Any religious public figures that you admire?

wordywalt comments on Apr 3, 2018:

Reinhold Niebuhr was a brilliant philosopher and a man who truly valued our democracy!

Mother arrested for allegedly using stun gun to wake son for Easter church service - ABC News

wordywalt comments on Apr 3, 2018:

She should have been given a 30 days sentence for assault.

What's on the other side people talk about?

wordywalt comments on Apr 3, 2018:

There is no other side.Wyhen it's over, it is over. Non-existence.

I am trying to understand how people seem to think that owning gun is a right but healthcare isn't>

wordywalt comments on Apr 3, 2018:

I agree. the choice is nothing short of sheer idiocy!

Still true today, from a year ago.

wordywalt comments on Apr 3, 2018:

Trump is the joke -- a damned terrible joke!!

How do you guys rest/relax your brain when tired?

wordywalt comments on Apr 3, 2018:

Meditation and short naps.

Anybody participating in a community garden?

wordywalt comments on Apr 3, 2018:

I looked at participating in a community garden, but found the space too limited and the participation restrictions too limiting. So, I continue my vegetable garden in my back yard.

living the dream to which extent are you able or willing to live the moment, the beauty & grace ...

wordywalt comments on Apr 3, 2018:

I learned to live in the moment back in the period - 1969 0 62 in Berlin, Germany, when we were srore surrounded by 300,000 Russian troops and Kraschev was threatening ab atacj in us iuf we did not get out of Berlin. The intensity and immediacy of life was fantastic. Since retirement, I am relaearning that way of living.

Hey, gentlemen, do us both a favor and please add a picture to your profile! It's not so much about...

wordywalt comments on Apr 2, 2018:

I have a picture posted, but am not interested in aything but exlchanging ideas. One can tell more from well formulated thoughts exchanged over time than from any picture.

I can't stomach the Christian right

wordywalt comments on Apr 2, 2018:

No really intelligent and moral person can.

Forest for the trees

wordywalt comments on Apr 2, 2018:

An insider turned outsider understands both sides -- to the chagrin and fear of remaining insiders.

What character traits indicate someone is a "good" person?

wordywalt comments on Apr 1, 2018:

Honesty, integrity, treating others with full dignity and respect, showing caring for others, lack of egocentrism.

Do you like country living? For those that do, did, ? Or want to

wordywalt comments on Apr 1, 2018:

I grew up in a town so small that I ould step over our side fence and go hynting in nearby fields, with a creek within one mile, and 2 rivers (the Sywannee and the Withlacoochie) within 9 miles. That did give me a love for the out-of-doorsAs a teenager I worked in nearly farmer's tobacco fields to earn money. Still, the cultural and intellectual sterility is not something I miss.

Have you ever: ate a whole box of cookies & didn't share?

wordywalt comments on Apr 1, 2018:

Probably, as a kid.

Have you ever: served on jury duty?

wordywalt comments on Apr 1, 2018:

No. I was picked for jury duty three times, but escused due to prior work commitments. I would like to serve on a jury today.

Have you ever: lied to your parents?

wordywalt comments on Apr 1, 2018:

Oh, yes. Anyone who says otherwise is likely lying.

Explain "angry atheists" to me.

wordywalt comments on Apr 1, 2018:

People have a right to choose to be deluded. What makes me angry is how religious leaders knowingly lie to and use people to enhance their power and wealth, and how they try to impose their dogma on others.

Do you think that Burt Langcaster was an exceptional actor who deserved more recognition by the ...

wordywalt comments on Apr 1, 2018:

He was a very good actor. I remember many diverse roles he played.

Do you feel a division happening in this country?

wordywalt comments on Apr 1, 2018:

Of, yes. Fostered by the corrupt Fox propaganda machine and Republican and TEA party demagogues.

I'm back for a few days.

wordywalt comments on Apr 1, 2018:

That is draining. Welcom back.

What did the father buffalo say to his son when he went off to college? "Bison"

wordywalt comments on Apr 1, 2018:

Groan.

What does compatible mean to you?

wordywalt comments on Apr 1, 2018:

Compatible means able to treat each other with caring, dignity, and respect and enjouing the companionship of the other. What we are able to tlerate varies hugely with the people involved.

Do you ever experience euphoria? What's usually responsible for it?

wordywalt comments on Apr 1, 2018:

Only a few times in my life have I ever experienced what has been called "flow" 00 a feeling of greatly heightened sensation and awareness. One time was almost 60 years ago driving rhough the empty streets of Miami after a delightful evening. The second time was in Berlin, Germany, also late at night, with empty streets. I can remember the echo of my own footsteps on the concrete, and the beutifulsounds of a man playing a trumpet nearby, almost as though he are searching for his musical nirvana.

How would you feel in a relationship if your significant other refused to fight?

wordywalt comments on Apr 1, 2018:

I had enough arguments to last me 5 lifetimes in my first marriage. I do not argue woith my second wife. We genrally try to discuss issues and resolve them without anger or control games. Even if I feel that I am right, if it is not a big issue, I accede. On the few occasions when my spouse wants to continue the argument and I feel that that is nothing to be gained, I either just walk away or I say something like, "I heard you loud and clear and that is enough," We have had few serious arguments.

Does anyone still balance their checking account?

wordywalt comments on Apr 1, 2018:

I have never balanced my chiecking account in my entire life. I always havbe a general idea of what I am spending and what I have in the account . In almost 60 years of having a checking account, I have overdrawn my account only twice -- each time by a few dollars.

I thought this was pretty astute.

wordywalt comments on Apr 1, 2018:

Almost sounds like a Donald Trump plan.

Trump vs Amazon: Concern or Jealousy? [money.cnn.com]

wordywalt comments on Apr 1, 2018:

Neither. It is demagogic game-playing to try to appeal to another group that is not prospering.

Stumbled on this article today.

wordywalt comments on Apr 1, 2018:

If you have lost your faith in reason, what anchors you?

Welcome. Come on in and join the fight.

wordywalt comments on Apr 1, 2018:

I am an angry, feminist, anti-ethnocentrist, progressive white guy. These guys, above, are either stupid, or greedy, or both.

Strange how much time and energy we spend on "life" when it all ends sooner than we expect.

wordywalt comments on Apr 1, 2018:

Like it or not, we have life. Might as well make the most of it.

Well this explains a whole lot!

wordywalt comments on Apr 1, 2018:

The core of the man -- demented egomania!

Happy Trans Day of Visibility

wordywalt comments on Mar 31, 2018:

Well stated. As a total heterosexual, I do not understand homosexuality and transgender choices, but not understanding does not cause me to condemn those who exsercie those choices.

Do humanimals have a propensity to be gullible?

wordywalt comments on Mar 31, 2018:

I can only speak for myself. As a young men, I was often gullible. Today, I have healthy skepticism, but not cynicism.

Have anyone ever lost a friend due to being an atheist?

wordywalt comments on Mar 31, 2018:

No. but it has genuinely strained and altered a few relationships.

Does hardship make a person stronger?

wordywalt comments on Mar 31, 2018:

Hardship helps a person grow stronger only if (1) one learns how to cope with situations and overcome them and how to develop strategies for dealing with difficulties, (2) the person develops the physical and/or mental stamina to overcome problems, and (3) the hardship is not more than that which a person could be expected to survive.

RelIgIous gop & trump

wordywalt comments on Mar 31, 2018:

Accurately depicts how much Republican ideologues really care about people.

For all the non-whites out there, a question: Does it bother you when people inquire about your ...

wordywalt comments on Mar 31, 2018:

No, why should it. There is something to be learned from the comparison and contrast bet ween cultures.

What is it do you think that makes you resistant to organized religions! Is it the structure?

wordywalt comments on Mar 31, 2018:

It is the false total system (purporting to include and explain everything) ideology and its demagogic leaders.

"Ever had an argument that never ends?

wordywalt comments on Mar 31, 2018:

I disagree. The "arguments that never end" are the result of a person who wants to hold onto a problem or issue forever so that they have a aweapon to try to club you over the head with it.

I am frustrated by a hyper religous christian in an email chain I'm cc'd on.

wordywalt comments on Mar 31, 2018:

Let her know that you are angry with her behavior and by her disrespect for your beliefs and privacy. Let her knw that, if necessary, uou will go to court and get a :cease and desist" order. When you get a call from those organizations, tell them clearly and unequivocally NEVER to call you again!

What constitutes a 'healthy' society & is it attainable?

wordywalt comments on Mar 31, 2018:

A healthy society is one that is open to change, but also carefully analytical about what the effects of such change could be. It is one which has concern for ALL of its people, one which treats all with dignity and respect, which provides real opportunities for growth and learning and encourages people to take advantage of those opportunities. It emphasizes learning and the application of that learning to improve the society. It encourages the seeking out of problems and focused attempts to solve those problems. It emphaizes taking care of our natural environment and the seeking of ecological health.

Why do theists believe in their book without reading every book?

wordywalt comments on Mar 31, 2018:

I am sure that most believers in all religions which have a "holy book" have never read the entire thing.They are all selective in taking the parts they want to emphasize.

Do you want a funeral, or a celebration of your life?

wordywalt comments on Mar 30, 2018:

No. I have already directed that there will be no service or celebration -- simply a scattering of my ashes by my 2nd wife and daughters.

I'm an Atheist... Soo, Should I Feel Stressed Out?

wordywalt comments on Mar 30, 2018:

As an atheist, I feel much more at peace with myself tyan I did as a believer. I know what I believe and why and am fully comfoetable with it!

Quantum physics proves that there IS an afterlife, claims scientist | Daily Mail Online

wordywalt comments on Mar 30, 2018:

Absolute quackery!

Have you ever attended an event and you were asked to pray?

wordywalt comments on Mar 30, 2018:

Yes. I replied, "I would perfer that someone else do it."

This is what I've been trying to say, just not as articulate. [m.youtube.com]

wordywalt comments on Mar 30, 2018:

SO well stated!!

How do you handle prayer at work?

wordywalt comments on Mar 30, 2018:

I have never been in a work situation in which prayers were offered -- even in the deep South.

I go to my local Ethical Humanist Society occasionally cause the folks there are kind, have a social...

wordywalt comments on Mar 30, 2018:

The mere fact that o do not believe in any religion is not a sufficient basis for forming an ongoing personal or intellectual relationship. There is a helluva lot more to life.

Living in the Bible belt it has to be refreshing to hear some thoughtfull disscussion on all ...

wordywalt comments on Mar 30, 2018:

Believe it or not, the fact that you have chosen not to believe is threatening to "true believers". They don't want anyone to even consider that option. If they could be, they would be religious despots.

I am struggling with my conscience, and compassion.

wordywalt comments on Mar 30, 2018:

She is not going to change. Bit your tongue and let her be.

Paster attacked by lions expecting the lord to intervein. [disclose.tv]

wordywalt comments on Mar 30, 2018:

He was as stupid as the snake handlers.

Just got asked what atheists do on Easter.

wordywalt comments on Mar 30, 2018:

What I do on Easter is the same I would do on any other day.

Why are churches still tax free?

wordywalt comments on Mar 30, 2018:

Poolitics.

Are most modern spiritual movements a net positive?

wordywalt comments on Mar 30, 2018:

I understand what you are saying, but I totally avoid use of the word "spiritual", as I do not believe that human beings have a spirit. Movements to be more in tune with nature and to be more caring and ethica;.

Is this what Mueller will dig into? [cnn.com]

wordywalt comments on Mar 30, 2018:

One of many, many of Trump's corrupt acts.

How many veterans are on here, and if you are a veteran, did you see combat?

wordywalt comments on Mar 29, 2018:

I served in the US Army from 1959 to mid 1962. There was no active combat at that time. During the year I served in West Berlin, Kruschev was frequently threatening to start World War II is we did not get our of Berlin and that was the time when the Berlin Wall was erected. We even had secret evacuation plans in case the Russian did attack (we were 3,000 troops 110 miles deep in Russian controlled East Germany, and surrounded by 300.000, Russian troops). I Iwas to be one of a small group of troops to stay behind and fight a suicide holding action as many units tried to break out to West Germany. We were all glad that the Russian attack never came.

Do you regret that your beliefs (or lack thereof) hinder the connection you make with some ...

wordywalt comments on Mar 29, 2018:

I regret that true believers cannot acknowledge the right of some people to believe differently than they do-- but their hang-ups are not going to affect me. and my choices.

Just googled something in relation to a post someone has made here.

wordywalt comments on Mar 29, 2018:

I didn't, but wished that I did. We have little money and few books. There was also no public library in the small town, but during the school year, I used the school libraty constantly.

Do you accept or reject friend request on Facebook by people you don’t know?

wordywalt comments on Mar 29, 2018:

I usually delete the request. But, sometimes, I ask why the person wants to be my friend. If the answer sounds lefit, I might try allowing it for a while. I fan always deltee i or de-friend the person..

Does intimacy contribute to your general health and happiness>

wordywalt comments on Mar 29, 2018:

Of course it does. There is much research to that effect.

What do you most like to do during your leisure time?

wordywalt comments on Mar 29, 2018:

vbegetable gardening, fishing. Before my vison got so bad, reading was my number 1.

Who likes to go to planetariums, museums, zoos and Parks?

wordywalt comments on Mar 29, 2018:

Me, too!

Christian extremists want Bill Maher punished for blasphemy

wordywalt comments on Mar 29, 2018:

Dangerous idiocy! This country is not a theocratic disctatorship. There is NO place for blasphemy laws in our country. Anyone calling for such laws is worse than a damned fool!

"Most Christian president ever." I want to cry at this woman's ignorance.

wordywalt comments on Mar 29, 2018:

She is notignorant. She is a willful damned fool!

Are you patient?

wordywalt comments on Mar 29, 2018:

Anyone who has been in the US Army has learned patience. The Army has always had a "hurry up and wait" way of operating. I have moderate patience.

What do you look forward to in spring time the most?

wordywalt comments on Mar 29, 2018:

Starting my spring vegetable garden.

Are you a jealous person ?

wordywalt comments on Mar 28, 2018:

No.

What's more important?

wordywalt comments on Mar 28, 2018:

That is strictly a personal decision.

Do liberals tend to be more tolerant, open, and thoughtful or are they often just as intolerant, ...

wordywalt comments on Mar 28, 2018:

Wat you describe are the irrational, ungrounded, and negative misstatements of the extreme right as they attempt to falsely disparage anyone who disagreeswith them.

Did anyone watch the season premier of Roseanne last night?

wordywalt comments on Mar 28, 2018:

I didn't watch her before, as I found her a not too bright and rather tastless person. Why should I watch her now.

Purpose

wordywalt comments on Mar 28, 2018:

We bring meaning to life by our thoughts, decisions, and actions. Otherwise, life has no inherent meaning.

Let's start a grammar war! It's Word Wednesday! The origin of "irregardless" is unknown.

wordywalt comments on Mar 28, 2018:

Whatever the source, . irregardless is, in effect, a double negative -- egro, not a proper word to be used by literate people.

I have one friend who is defiantly atheist, he also happens to be a scientist, a good person who has...

wordywalt comments on Mar 28, 2018:

It is hard, especially when your friend tries to convert you, sure that he is acting in your best interest. Your have to set limits, which keep the relationship today from being that which it once was.

If today would be your last day

wordywalt comments on Mar 28, 2018:

Spend time with my wife, call my children and talk with them, go fishing, and have a big bowl of ice cream.

Does anyone else question themselves?

wordywalt comments on Mar 28, 2018:

I know that I am capable of error, and am open to that possibility. But, at this stage of my life, after many years of thought, experience and reflection, I am quite comfortable with who and where I am today. My perceptions, opinions, beliefs, and actions have been tested and hard won.

If you were ever married, did you wear a wedding ring?

wordywalt comments on Mar 28, 2018:

Yes, I had a wedding ring. I stopped wearing it after I gained weight years ago (hard to get on and off), and after a finger injury. I am not one for jewelry, anyway. I wear none -- not weven a wristwath.

If religious people 100% believed their doctrines, would they have any fear of death?

wordywalt comments on Mar 28, 2018:

Yes, if they are not sure they have been good enough.

When considering romantic prospects, what do you consider most important?

wordywalt comments on Mar 28, 2018:

3, 6, 2, 1, 5, 4

Spice Drops, Charleston Chews, Good & Plenty, Reese Pieces, and Dark Chocolate...

wordywalt comments on Mar 28, 2018:

I am diabetic, but I used to love dark chocalate. I really like most fresh fruits.

What random act of kindness do you practice regularly?

wordywalt comments on Mar 28, 2018:

I help people with little things when I see the oortunity to do so. I thank people for little things. I share my home-grown vegetables with friends and neighbors.

I am looking to possibly move in the next 18 months or so.

wordywalt comments on Mar 28, 2018:

Tampa has a reasonable cost of living -- lower than the Northeast or West Coast. Rent is not cheap, but not exorbitant. Home ownership -- can get a good home for less than $300,ooo. Transportation: if by car, good roads, but heavy traffic; citywide bus system' great airport. Good doctors and hospitals, excellent medical system at U. of South Fla.(we the USF system for physicians and treatments).

Why hasn't an efficient health care system been implemented?

wordywalt comments on Mar 28, 2018:

The answers are simple: (1) greed, (2) an irrational,l paranoid fear of anything which might be called socialized, and (3) moribund Republican ideology.

Name your five favorite painters of the twentieth century

wordywalt comments on Mar 28, 2018:

Andrew Wyeth is by far my favorite.

2 days till my birthday I wish I could invite Everyone of you out with me on Saturday night to ...

wordywalt comments on Mar 28, 2018:

Happy birthday!

Heart breaker..

wordywalt comments on Mar 28, 2018:

56 years ago. We have never come into contact again.

Survey Ranks the U.S. Health Care System Lowest in Performance | Time

wordywalt comments on Mar 28, 2018:

Yes. It is far too expensive, riddled with greed, and far too inequitable in availability and quality of care.

[facebook.com] This made me laugh.

wordywalt comments on Mar 27, 2018:

Too true to be funny.

How do you sleep?

wordywalt comments on Mar 27, 2018:

Like you, I used to sleep on my stomah. After back surgery 38 years ago, I sleep mainly on my sides.

When you have dinner at a new restaurant, do you order something that you are familiar with or try ...

wordywalt comments on Mar 27, 2018:

Depends. If something is on the menu with inteeresting ingredients or an interesting combination of ingredients, I would be tempted to try it.

Isn't happiness just the absence of grief?

wordywalt comments on Mar 27, 2018:

Oh, no. I was once clinically depressed and took anti-depressants. Yhey took away the sadness and depression, but made me emotionally dead. I felt nothing and it was horrible. It was worse than the depression.

What Makes a Good Life? What a 75-Year Harvard Study Found

wordywalt comments on Mar 27, 2018:

I am so glad that I found my second wife. I firmly believe that if I had stayed in my first marriage, I would have ben dead years ago.

Too honest.

wordywalt comments on Mar 27, 2018:

If he was so easily deterred, he is no loss.

We all know Don the Con is a laughingstock to the world.

wordywalt comments on Mar 27, 2018:

Love it!

Former Supreme Court Justice Stevens: Repeal the Second Amendment I don’t believe it need ...

wordywalt comments on Mar 27, 2018:

Jefferspn also said, "The earth belongs to the living, not the dead." Scalia's judicial philosophy of "original intent"-- the we should always go by what the original intent of the founding fathers was, as expressed in the Constitution was nothing short and stultifying. And Gorsuch believes in the same horse manure. He should have never been approved for his post.

How old were you when you learned how to ride a bike without training wheels?

wordywalt comments on Mar 27, 2018:

I never used training wheels. I learned to ride a bike at age 8.

Hey coffee snobs, have you ever tried the other species of coffee?

wordywalt comments on Mar 27, 2018:

Those are not separate species, but onoy different sub-species or varieties.

How long will you repeat behaivor before you change it?

wordywalt comments on Mar 27, 2018:

Too vague a statement to respond to.

I grew up in a mennonite sect that practices a form of "shunning" to members that have left the ...

wordywalt comments on Mar 27, 2018:

It is a form of coercive punishment designed to try to force doubtrs back into the fold.

Which is the more disturbing, Russian politics or Islamic fundamentalism

wordywalt comments on Mar 26, 2018:

Both are disturbing, but Russia is more dangerous. Russia has been our dangerous adversary for over 70 years -- both as a communist nation, and as an ultra-nationalstic aggressor with an inferiority complex. Due to their culture and the totalitarian control of Putin and his ilk, Ruswsia will remain our most serious adversary for many years to come. Today's young people don't remember how the Russians made slave states out of all of eastern Europe, formented revolutions all over the world, and often threatned the start of World War III.I remember: Iwas in Berlin when the wall sent up.