chrisp65

sshhhhhhh Shush, don't go saying that. He's a man of the people, the anti establishment, self made, one of us candidate. Getting things done because if he doesn't do it for himself, nobody else will. If we can't trust Trump to snatch the west back from 'them' who can we trust? Plus, he's funny.

I had a couple of original Booker T albums as hand me downs. Green Onions and Soul Limbo. At some point I've ended up parting with them and then having to buy them again, which is a bit annoying.

Yeah, I think it's the open hostility bit that gets me. That coupled with a presumption to know what I think and pass judgement on it, is a scary combination.

In my life I've met very few people that have this condemn / repent / live in sin thing going on that is sometimes quoted in this thread. I don't know if it's more prevalent as a midlands thing all this fire and brimstone? Or perhaps I've just lead a sheltered life and missed out on it. I genuinely can't think of an occasion I've been asked to 'repent of my sins' in a style I picture old man Ian Paisley shaking his fist and warbling his threats. Perhaps I need to watch more dracula movies, or move to Kidderminster. But you're right, it isn't different to the position of some 'true believers' this whole superiority thing. I think that's the gist of what I was trying to say in the post you've quoted from, I don't like that sort of thing. From anyone. So I guess we're agreeing?

I'm not sure I've said I do and I'm not sure it's relevant or helpful to the debate. In fact, clearly for some, declaring for one side or the other would lead them to close down a debate because they would then 'know' me better than I do. Apparently, it would allow others to diagnose me as mentally ill. Self proclaimed general and medical superiority is an interesting mindset. What I do believe, is people prescribing whole swathes of other people with a single mindset is rarely helpful or constructive. I don't like people that want to impose their views on abortion on all others. I don't like people that want to cut my head off because I am or am not a sunni. I don't like people that presume to know three billion others are mentally ill. I find all those things to be a similar closed mindset.

Some special non-believers have a mindset that they know exactly what all believers universally must think and believe better than all the three billion believers do.

Surely that's a statement of the obvious. A bit like saying if you call yourself a non-believer your mindset is that the book isn't right to some degree or another. People that don't believe to some degree or another are just as capable of being every type of person, just like a believer. If you would call yourself a non-believer, you have a stereotypical fixed mindset? Believe it or not, some people have no gaps, they are just utterly comfortable in their own skin with their own beliefs. There are even some non-believers that have 'gaps'. I'm not advocating anything or suggesting any one thing is a better route through life than another. I'm just suggesting that prescribing a few billion people as having a fixed mindset and you know what that is better than they do... I just get a bit annoyed when anyone, from either side of the fence, presumes to know the inner workings of all others. It's like a bit of a god complex.

I think it might be a little bit rich in this thread of all places to stereotype all people that believe in all variations of all abrahamic religions as having 'a mindset'. There's one dominant mindset here, and that's the casual prescribing of mental illness. I'd say I've got a number of friends, from methodist ministers to just old school quakers and even a mormon that are anything but easily understood. They certainly have very little common ground on any number of issues from nukes to abortion through gay marriage and the rightful place of bacon as king of sandwiches. I was actually talking to an Imam in the chip shop last night (no, I really really was!) and he was fascinating and didn't once try to cut my head off because I'd ordered sausage. I've also got a couple of 'atheist' friends who have very set very strict views on what all religious people must be like and must believe in. Usually through having read something clever, rather than having actually spoken to a mix of religious people. I rarely find it's the 'religion' that makes someone helpful, nice to know or a bully, a prick, or a sex pest. I tend to find those characteristics prevalent in all sorts of people. It's almost like lots of people can't cope unless they've put all others in little easily labelled boxes, whilst declaring themselves to be terribly modern liberals. But yeah, stereotypes, let's go....

it's a big birthday tomorrow (not mine), I'll be cooking for 14 people if it all goes wrong, I've got Domino Pizza on speed dial as prep, I'm currently drinking a few Pear Koppaberg, much much too sweet for me, but I've bought it now....

It's tricky because we have to use double agents and they are saying we haven't Putin a bid.

Having had a good read through the Soviets' nuclear war strategy for europe, might just be the biggest ITK shout I've ever read on VT.

not a spoof, not The Day Today or Brass Eye, just your top quality Sky News

not a problem

would

Self starters buying in to anarchist terrorism were the big fashion just over 100 years ago. Between them they managed to kill: President of France 1894, Prime Minister of Spain 1897, Empress of Austria 1898, King of Italy 1900, U.S. President 1901. They also bombed religious processions, public buildings, random shops and businesses. Some of the bombers were committed anarchists. Some wanted to be famous and jumped on the band wagon having read reports in newspapers. OK it's a while ago. But just imagine the meltdown if that list was replicated today.

Their numbers are tiny and their actual physical effect is tiny. I'd be interested to know what percentage of europe's population of over 700 million has been killed. It will be a small number. Whilst they shouldn't be ignored and can't be ignored, the media is currently doing a great job of bringing us every emergency and death everywhere and making this look like we are losing some sort of cultural struggle. There are 700 million of us, we will only lose anything we can't be arsed to stand up for. Including civil liberties. Let's be vigilant, let's be aware, and safe and secure. But most of all, let's keep on keeping on being normal and doing normal stuff. 700 million of us.

But the trouble with demanding visible public condemnation of everything is that it could end up filling your life. Endlessly having to state the obvious that you are against stuff. It's then this double edge, this suggestion, deliberate, implicit, or misread, that to not condemn is to condone. That's a really bad path. I haven't seen many people condemn the attack in Japan today. Am I to take from that it has been condoned by all that didn't condemn it? Of course not.

A swift smooth hand over of power, versus months of in fighting played out direct in to the lense of camera 6. Latest ICM Poll

Don Letts DJ Set over at Clwb Ifor Bach in September. £10 so slightly miffed that it's one of the dearest tickets I've bought in a while, and he's playing records!

-------- I had a listen to this album today and it was almost like a mind trick, the sound was as close to being in the room for a live performance as I've ever heard.

ditto, british football team