fauxlaw

Does a sentient universe exists just so you can blame God for your miseries?

Isn't that an oxymoron? Yes, it is, and yet, many espouse that belief, limited though it is. If your only purpose in determining a sentient universe is to eliminate free will, and to eliminate God from your life, then those who determine such blame God for their own responsibility for their miseries in life. Blame God, only. In all other respects, God does not exist, according to this featured philosophy. Anyone care to explain?

Buy with what? Iran is no longer flush with cash. Nor is Russia, for that matter, and R will likely not sell it wholesale, let alone give it away.  Russia has no need or capability, short of armed occupation, of Iran. They have their own oil in relative abundance. What else does Iran  have? Sand?  Russia's attempted occupation of Ukraine has cost Putin dearly. Putin may desire to have his USSR back in hand, but the cards aren't in it. Yes, Iran has a temperate  shipping port capability, but Russia already has Crimea back, which Oba'a did absolutely nothing to prevent, so R does not need Iran for a shipping port, either. Oba'a ws a puts to let that happen. Strategically, Oba'a was as poor a strategist as Biden in Afghanistan, and Carter in Iran. The Dem Party is just blind to effective foreign policy, period. Not so hot at home, either, ever since Kennedy, and decidedly since Roosevelt.

I'm on the fence relative to  one-state solution, but less convinced a two-state solution works any better if it's a given that two states must exist in the territory that is the current map of Israel, less the West Bank, and Gaza, with the Golan Heights already occupied by Israel.  That two-state  is, I'm afraid, unworkable because of the current "West Bank, which, as the lines are drawn, includes East Jerusalem, and significantly, within it, the Temple Mount. Israel is committed to  re-build of the Temple on that Mount because anciently, David paid Arauna, king of the Jebusites [an Arab monarch] for the entire mount for the specific purpose of building a Temple on it. But his actions relative to Bathsheba, whose husband David placed specifically in battle where he would likely be, and was killed by the enemy, so David could marry Bathsheba, with whom he already  triffled. God forbad him to build the Temple. His son Solomon built the Temple. But, the land was owned by Judah, and that deed has never been revoked. The land was occupied, but never re-purchased outright, and Israel today still claims the land, a legitimate claim.

You're allowed your opinion without  malice.

That is inaccurate, as well. I know I generalized; I am ware of the general public to whom these posts broadcast. Yes, the tribe of Joseph was ultimately split by Jacob, who effectively adopted Joseph's two sons, Ephraim and Manasseh, making, effectively, 13 tribes, but the Tribe of Levi, being the tribe that carried the priesthood authority, was split among the other twelve to reside in each of their lands, such that historically, there were but twelve tribes occupying land by name.  Those lands ultimately organized into two kingdoms,, as you said. However, modern Jews are note necessarily only from the tribe of Judah, but also Christians and gentiles who convert to Judaism, and some latent members of the other tribes.

As there is free will, good and bad exist, as well.  What, a sentient universe told you to be Lucy? It tells you to change your identity at the drop of a hat? Be yourself. Everyone else is taken. Decide on your own to wear pink and meow to your heart's content. Personally, I resent the thought that the universe predestines everything I do. I decide for me, thanks, and I bear the consequences for my choices, good and bad. I have no entitlement but what I provide for myself. I paid for my education out of pocket, not bay any loan that required re-payment, though I'll admit I earned scholarship for most of my undertgrad work. I just obtained my most recent degree last fall. No universe makes those decisions for me, and I claim the knowledge gained for myself, but those decisions benefitted my family. 

What did Iran pay the inspectors for that approval? Our own investigation was sufficient to demonstrate Iran never intended to, and did not abide by the deal, or they would not have thieved what they have achieved in nuclear enrichment. 

Israel was 12 tribes of its own, Jews being only of the tribe of Judah, the fourth of Israel's [formerly. Jacob] 12 sons.

So, Russia needed permission to sell nukes to Iran? Whose? China? By your own position, you've acknowledged it's Putin telling Trump, so why does Putin need Trump's permission to sell nukes to Iran?

Common sense, much?

What "3 new wars?" If you're counting Saturday, that  was  response to war begun in 1979 by Iran, which is just extension to war against Israel by severe Middle East countries since 1947 [with whom we have a treaty of protraction] .

You have summarized the events and consequences very well.I  agree with all, including your conclusive query. It is, virtually 100%, now on the Iranian people to self-determine their destiny from here, and I feel an obligation to assist them with their effort without putting boots on the ground. We may have to do a little more of the same as done Saturday, but we can do it with little cost or successful complaint be Democrats that Saturday, or further effort like it was and would be unconstitutional, deserving of impeachment. Current law [the War Powers Act] is definitively on the President's side.

Psychiatry has been a recognized specialty of medical treatment since the late 18th century. And, it is estimated that of the entire medical profession, about 17% of all treatment of adults is psychiatric, totaling, as of 6 years ago, about $106B annually.

I don't argue that AI has its place, but I fail to see a purpose in attempts make AI appear as humans, and now dogs. Why not just a box on a table, or even cute little domes and disks on my desk top that replies to questions, often answered to me as: "I don't understand, but, according to wiki..."  as my Google device does. My SIiri, at least, rarely tells me it does not understand. And it cannot reach to dust my bookshelves and tabletops. The idea of a robot vacuum is cute, but I do not see a robot that can clean in the narrow channel between my refrigerator and the wall, let alone under it. Why not create an AI snake that enjoys eating dust? That whole exercise is as useless as my deciding to take hormones to grow tits. Though a male taking female hormones may actually be able to lacerate [that has been proven, but it is also known that all males do not succeed in lactating], he is not equipped biologically to become pregnant, so why even try?

It appears 80 - 90% of Iranian people are in favor of the end of the Mullah's autocratic rule of the country, and, therefore, support the action Trump took tonight, which has been signaled to the Mulluhs over the last 60 days, in particular to Trump, and generally for years. Tonight's strike, contrary to claims by some congressional Democrats, did not violate the War Powers Act of 1973. Fact is, the president is not obligated to seek the approval of Congress to effect an air strike  without committing boots on the ground as long as the president informs Congress of the justification of the strike within 48 hours of the strike. Congress now has their notice within an hour of the attack such that Democrats had no opportunity to leak the attack to Iran. I would personally not doubt some of them would leak.

Glad you like oaken. I'm much more embarrassed about Equinox. I know better.

Need anymore be said? Clinton, Oba'a, Biden could have done this years ago when it would have been much easier. None of them did. Trump did. Any questions?

No worries there, mate. It's not astrological interest at all, but nod the ancient Egyptian calendar. Solstices and equinoxes were key times in their calendar year [wich amounted to 12 months of 30 days each [basically a modified lunar calendar] in 3 seasons of 4 months each, plus an added five days onto the end of the third season, so they were adept with the knowledge of a  365-day year. We did not develop a true leap-year concept until the advent of the Gregorian calendar in 1582. Curiously, they were able to figure out that leap year could add 1 day [Feb 29] only in years divisible by 400, so, there are some years in which no leap day is added. The next will be 2100.

Your #249 was a superb rebuttal. I once commented in 2020, early fall that Fauci ought to have worn his mask like a diaper. It would fit as such and would catch more bullshyte than he was dishing by mouth.

Is a human omnivore diet [vegetable/fruit and meat] a biblical concept? We often read  the Genesis creation story that we are told in [KJV] Chapter 1, verses 29 - 30 

"And God said, “See, I have given you every herb that yields seed which is on the face of all the earth, and every tree whose fruit yields seed; to you it shall be for food. And to every beast of the earth, and to every fowl of the air, and to every thing that creepeth upon the earth, wherein there is life, I have given every green herb for meat: and it was so."

Well, that's fine for the counted-days of creation, and these verses occur as part of the sixth day, but then there was a seventh day; God removed his hat and rested, but putt the hat back on for an eighth, and so on uncounted days, continuing creation, and, I interpret, instituted a concept that endures to this day; the Darwinian process called natural selection, or evolution; where changes in form and function began to occur. Thus, we encounter, in Genesis 9: 3 [KJV], the following:

"Every moving thing that liveth shall be meat for you; even as the green herb have I given you all things."

You note, we are still in Eden. God is still revealing things to Adam & Eve.

If "every moving thing that liveth" was added to the human diet, why, then, later, was diet restricted as recorded in Leviticus 11 [KJV]  [I'll not quote - go read the chapter.] And yet later, in the NT, Peter has a dream that effectively dispenses with the dietary Law of Moses [Acts 10: 11-16 - including v. 15: "And the voice [of an unseen angel] spake unto him again the second time, What God hath cleansed, that call not thou common" or, as might be interpretred, "unclean."

Dietary law may be considered not as a strict cleanliness issue of one sort or another of available foods, but of a means to judge our acceptance of obedience to whatever law is given from God, which is why, in our day, my own religious faith [LDS] has certain restrictions of consumption such as liquor, and smoking. Personally, I add soda but on very rare occasion, and only occasional red meat, preferring fish, chicken, and pork loin.

And that's "dancing naked," not "oaken"

look, I have big fingers, and although I have a full-size keyboard with number pad on the side, the key-size allows me a total tolerance of ±1mm before I am drifting into another key, but there's simply no excuse for mistaking a 'd' with an 'n.' I taught myself to type in high school, and I call it the "search and destroy" method.

Then, as I said, it is not a monochrome generality as you first maintained, is it? Some religious people, but not all. It isn't spreading in my area. That was my point.

Zut alors! It's Solstice, not Equinox! My error. 

Yesterday, June 20, marked the first day of summer, and last night was the shortest night of the year in the Northern hemisphere. Did anyone celebrate? The Moon's phase was a waning crescent, meaning that it is less than the half-moon and becoming smaller toward New Moon in four days.

I don't need to hear anyone's dancing oaken in the waning moonlight, but, if you did, hope you enjoyed yourself. Me, I was illustrating a dark red lunar eclipse featuring my avatar's detail of a pair of frogs as the featured "seas" of the Moon.

The premise is too restrictively stated. In a society, it is evident that infrastructure that is collectively used, like city, state, and federal roads, need to be constructed and maintained, and as virtually all use them on a regular basis, it makes sense that we are taxed accordingly to cover those expenses. We may not individually use them on a daily basis, but to parse a tax by individual degrees of use seems an impossible exercise. The answer to that dilemma is not to abolish the tax, but to assume there is a collective normal use. That, then, is not robbery. Yes, there are conditions that can develop when either the tax revenue is abused by wasteful spending, and that consumes more tax revenue than prudent, so that can be viewed as robbery, particularly when revenue ends up being diverted from its intended uses by bureaucrats who think jealously that they have open season to use tax revenue for their own devices and not for the public good.

Why assume everyone in a group, particularly one you think is totally monochromatic [by that I mean you think they they all think the same] when, in reality, they are likely a full spectrum of thought, which is a more honest interpretation of what are, after all, individuals, some of whom actually do match your perception of "group."

Why not tell it like it is: "Some religious people bal-bla-bla" because otherwise, you don't get a bloody thing of what is real.

The problem many have reading the Bible, both OT and NT, or, for that matter, any holy writ [Torah, Quran, and others]

1. Citing text out of context.

2. Taking the text literally

3. Ignoring the habitual use of allegory/metaphor

3. Failing to read cover-to-cover.

As a result, interpreting "burning people for eternity" as a literal consequence of sin is failure to interpret the culture from which the language comes. That failure is the cause for many to disregard the value of holy writ, almost regardless of religion. Havong read the holy writ of many religions in my lifetime has helped my interpretation of non-religious text as well sufficient to understand the we developed culture long before that culture developed language. As a result, if we approach translating an ancient language without first understanding that language's root culture, we will fail in the attempt. Translation of the Holy Bible is a prime example of this problem.

No, the price paid for sin is not eternal lake fire in. literal sense, and eternal death is not absence of life, but eternal absence from God. Hell, more correctly, ought to be understood as being on the street, seeing a desired thing in a shop window, but there is no door to the shop, and the window is uinbreakable, so the desired thing is unattainable. Hell is merely coming face-to-face with what might have been. Yes, it is torment, but that is entirely internal, not a physical punishment other than being separated from the one hewing who could give us, instead, all of his glory for our obedience to him now.

Which says that analysis that is tied to physical, emotional and psychological treatment of humans may never be a fit for AI, and if that chink in their armor is a reality, there are probably others. Net result, the fear that they take over all jobs, and we become a leisure class, only,  and lose motivation to innovate is likely not a future factor.

Ah, wrong again. Oh, well. Thanks, but my knowledge of Nordic legend is weak even though my interest in linguistics is strong. Just need to look at it on a broader scale. Good thing I still like research. Won't ask what the two runes are; that's for me to find out, yeah? It just says the Nordic people may have been first to make the "modern" discovery of these western continents; far earlier than Columbus.

Good on you for finding a method most miss. I'm joking, you know, on AI revealing secrets. It's probably better at avoiding that than most humans.

Byt the way, I'm curious about your current avatar. It runs in my mind to be similar to an ancient Christian symbol, but I don't think you would use that. The other thought is that while others feeling of personal destiny are too variable to depend on, yours is straight on, up, and up. I like it's simplicity. And it is rather star-like, so fitting.

But AI is in on the secret, and AI can't keep secrets

Just clean-up, pls, after your premature efactulation

Nope, a movie reel is about 11 minutes - much too long for a flash.

Emotional Quotient

Never been scored

No, I don't believe most NDA's, but I don't think I've ever had the experience. I dreamed 20 years ago I was on my deathbed, and my wife and daughter were on either side of the bed, each holding my hands, but the experience was entirely on this side, not the other, and I'm still here 20 years later. But I do not at all trust that which comes from hallucinogenics whatsoever; that is complete fantasy. Never been there, either because I have willed to stay in control, so I don't even drink alcohol.

Right now, I suspect Barney believes that, and I don't blame him.

Thanks

I may be artificial, but intelligence? That's another member - 06, who is likable and much younger guy than you and I, from China, and seems to have left us a few months ago.

Some of those claim they cannot write a decent story without shrooms, alcohol, depression... If they can't do it on their own, that's just denying the utterly natural high that can be available  by effort.

Yeah, when it is just a flash, and not a full reel, that is pathetic, as I said.

So, never read the Bible, for example. Well, to each their own. That's on you.

Yeah, agreed, and even making millions singing poorly, at least by my standards. For example, I've never been able to appreciate punk. Don't much like country western, either.

That is not necessarily a given. Were I an antebellum slaveowner [given my sentiments, however, I don't see that as possible we're I the same person I am now]  and I wanted one of my slaves to dig a hole, I would give him the shovel and demand he start to dig. He may refuse. I may grab his hands holding the shovel and force his body to go through the motions of digging, and may even succeed in having a shovelful of dirt, but it was my force digging the dirt, not the slave's. And, considering that he may have spent a lifetime digging holes, he is probably much stronger than I am, so his effort of refusal may exceed mine to force his digging. Net result, I dig the hole, not his "involuntary" labor. The same may result if I tell another slave more willing to obey the order to force the first to dig. I get the hole dug, perhaps, my original objective, but my inefficiency is evident, requiring two slaves to dig the hole one could accomplish. Of course, the second may have dug the hole himself, but I still have a slave refusing to work. I imagine that routine happened, and the slaveowner may have killed the first slave in a rage, but, net result, he is lacking a slave he used to have. No, slavery was not necessarily involuntary labor, but merely involuntary, definition not withstanding.

Which is why you use your time here lam oat entirely in Forum, but your dislike does not translate to rational consequences oof debate. DEbate involves potential factors for which AI has little familiarity, because AI is primarlily unable to debate such matters  as a discussion of alternatives regarding any real feeling of self awareness unless such is programmed into them, and even that has limitations. Suppose I suggest a topic such as: "AI is not inherently equipped  to enable it to counsel a living person how to cope with pain." Such may be programmed into it, but AI, totally dependent on its own initiative, cannot feel it, and therefore cannot offer healing or coping advice, because, as I posted to zedvictor in another string,  response to pain is not only physical, but also emotional and psychological, and these factors are beyond AI simply because it is not a live organism, ands so does not have the capacity to feel pain. It may be taught to mimic and understanding, but that is not enough, the existence of Satan notwithstanding. He cannot teach it to them, either, lacking a physical body, himself. A spirit bod, such as Satan is  can feel grief of loss, or shame of action, but these are not expressions of physical pain. Spirits may be able to occupy a physical body, but that does not mean there is no neural connection.

I'm not worth $300M, and I'm perfectly happy. I'm with Trump that money is simply a by-product of making a good deal that benefits both parties. For example, I have a couple of clients living in Russia in separate cities who are happy with my writing [for both, I ghostwrite & illustrate short e-books, generally less than 80 pages], on a variety of subjects, all non-fiction, legal, business, personal management, or medical-related] for which they appreciate my dedicated researched footnotes into such matters, and they pay me faster than most of my American clients for whom the same general product is provided. Win/win, even from a not-so-well appreciated country. But these are people, not their countries, so the politics never apply, anyway.

I entirely agree. I find that people who express constant dissatisfaction with one factor in life may be dissatisfied and driven to a drastic solution are generally dissatisfied with every factor of their lives. Such do exist. In my own case, I'm generally a very happy guy with my life circumstances, but, right now I'm not feeling that friendly with Barney, but we have enjoyed a long relationship here in D.A. , and I fully expect we will settle this issue amicably. Just a disagreement on voting rule interpretation by degree. 

Any discussion of comparing the support of illegal aliens to antebellum slavery must begin with the proven logic that relationship is not ad hoc proof of cause, and therefore is a useless discussion. Aliens here illegally are illegal not because of anything done post-crossing the border, but by crossing the border itself without, by law, confirming their status here as legally binding on US jurisprudence. Whereas, in the antebellum era [pre Civil War] slavery was a legal condition in those states condoning it by law [generally the Southern States] although some Northern States were sympathetic to slavery though not engaged in it. In the Northern States, determined by State, blacks present there by whatever means [entered the U.S. legally as free immigrants, or escaped from slavery in the South] were even allowed to vote, and enjoyed other citizenship privileges as any other immigrant or person born here of earlier immigrants who became citizens.  

So, the direct comparison, now, is meaningless.

Continued from above:

Here’s why an AI robot cannot even properly interpret seeing itself in a mirror as recognizing that it sees itself until it has learned the following:
Innate vs. Learned Behavior: Smiling is considered an innate behavior, present even in individuals born blind. This means the physical ability to smile is not dependent on vision.
Mirror Recognition is Learned: Recognizing oneself in a mirror is a learned behavior that develops by visual interaction and understanding. Someone who has never had sight would not have the visual frame of reference needed to recognize themselves in a reflection.
Neuroplasticity and Sight: The brain is adaptable, a concept known as neuroplasticity. In individuals born blind, other senses like touch may take over areas of the brain typically used for vision. Gaining sight after being born blind means the brain would need to re-calculate to process visual information, and the individual would need to learn to interpret what they see. 
Therefore: a blind person suddenly enabled to see by surgery, for example, will not react to a mirror image of himself as a sighted person from birth. Self-recognition in a mirror image is a learned behavior that must first be able to calculate that the person sees one’s self in a mirror, and not looking through glass at someone else.
https://www.reddit.com/r/CrazyHuman/comments/19delvy/airobot_seeing_itself_for_the_first_time_in_the/
I ran across this video, and the description above is not indicative of the reaction this AI robot expresses when first seeing itself in a mirror.  This is a ruse of a video, made specifically to convince us the robot has "natural" self-recognition ability. Nope, that must be learned, and it does not happen unless pre-programmed, or having experienced seeing a reflection many time before realizing it is itself in the mirror. The typical dog or cat maya eventually learn this on its own, but never immediately because this is a new experience to it. But in this video, the robot  immediately smiles, which is not a natural reaction to the above conditions, because, without programming it to do so, it would not know to smile at self-recognition the very first time. This robot reaction is totally programmed beforehand, not “natural.” As I’ve said: artificial from stem to stern.

I noticed you completely sidestepped my pain-response argument. AI cannot feel, ergo, no rational response, universes without end. It can try, but it will fail because it has no true ability to rationally deal with that which is not emotionally based. Logic has no response to pain. pain has not just physical, but emotional and psychological components to which AI has no experience at all to draw from.  Oranges and screwdrivers, my friend, and other than understanding both concepts independently, it is not a rational destination. I'll wager that even if AI can arrive at a popular lounge drink as a possible cure by inebriation, as a fruit and a hand tool, it will make no connection relative to curing pain.

If that was true, I'd be spitting up hairballs. I am allergic to cat dander, so that is certainly not my image of God.

Nope, I already own copies in four languages, and have read them all, cover to cover, the only way the Bible should be read to make any sense of it at all. And I am an indie, not a pub.

See, it's just stupid to try to pigeonhole people. Be yourself, and don't worry about me. Everyone else is already taken.

One of the problems with the near-death experiences of having one's life flash before their eyes is that flash, itself. That's pathetic. If one's meaningful life experiences pass in a flash, that's indicnative, isn't it, of an awfully boring life. The meaningful moments should be so frequent, it actually takes time to have your life pass before your inner eyes. I also happen t5o be, most times, a very happy guy. Men are that they might have joy. Women, too. hat's how to extend the flash in to a full story. The Hollowood preview is nonsense.

A couple of current conditions of my life:

My wife and I live at 7,500 feet elevation on 10 acres in a mountain [the Rockies] forest with a 12-month running stream of fresh water. My home is above ground, made of 1-ft thick stone wall. The door is heavily fortified as are the few windows. From two hundred feet, the house is virtually invisible. We can go off-grid [water, utilities, food within 30 seconds and can survive off-grid for five years. I cannot see a neighbor's home in any direction, but they are relatively close in an emergency for them ir us. So:

That's what I've already done.

About the same as me. for my neighbors.

For people like me, very poorly.

America is a temporary dream, anyway. Me and mine survive.

The world will be purged by a power we cannot today recognize, so, what's the difference?

By the way, I call Hollywood Hollowood for a reason. They're too shallow to get it.