A'Villan

You mean the treatment of women in Muslim communities? You think that the imam's words were not a true reflection of the reality? If I am accurate in my understanding of the meaning of your post, then I would suggest contemplating throwing stones from a glass house. You do know marital rape was legal in my country until 1981, and 1993 in yours? You know that poverty means that the standards are insufficient? Did you know that poverty is rising in the Middle East and that almost one fifth of the Middle East live on less than $2 a day? Did you know that 13% of U.S citizens are living in poverty? One third of the country in 'near poverty' according to scholars? Seeing as we are contemplating, I wonder if we can reconsider who our true enemies are and which battles we choose to fight?

I think with 8 or 9 games to go there is marginal difference in the level of difficulty in the remaining games for any given team. Why? One third of teams in the division are within reach of 5th or 6th place. They have everything to play for. The top 4 teams, especially the top 3, are still vying for automatic promotion. They have everything to play for. One quarter of teams are fighting to save themselves from relegation. They have everything to play for. That leaves a handful of teams who are essentially making up the numbers for the remainder. They still have pride to play for. What I think matters most is the points advantage or deficit and a teams ability to leverage their talent on any given day. Thankfully we are positioned in 6th, not 10th, and we have the personnel and chemistry to succeed. The advantage is not huge, so we'll see what happens. I'm confident, as I have been for the majority of Smith's tenure, that we will make playoffs. We've not been the best, but we've shown that we can be. I really don't fear anyone in this competition.

I really don't know how to interpret your post here.

If Grealish's volley from the corner doesn't win this years I will be f***ing amazed. As for 2018. The distance on Neves as well as placement is pretty incredible.

Weak cordial.

It is interesting. I practice martial arts for the self discipline. It's more mental than it is physical. Yet I have had a few instructors who take pride in the ability to do somebody in. Whether adept at combat or not, this mentality of wanting to do somebody in, or over, is rife in the world we live in. I don't align with that saying, 'cruel to be kind'. You have to be fair. And that means being fair to yourself too. You cannot lay down and die in the face of danger, oppression or injustice. Trump is not a good leader. He is the epitome of everything wrong with leadership. This is not to suggest he is evil, simply that he doesn't fulfill the fundamentals of leading. To create a world that people want to belong to.

I spoke with the head doctor for addiction medicine at St. Vincent's hospital and he says that either dopamine or serotonin (I forget which one) take 14 months of abstinence to return to normal levels. So by that it will take 14 months for you to start taking pleasure in the things you used to enjoy. That's a blessing if you ask me. 14 months is not all that long. The downside, is that even after 14 months of abstinence, using the drug even 3 times, will send your levels back down to that of an everyday user. So anyone doing this is kidding themselves if they think they can get away with the odd bender. Hope this offers some useful perspective.

Thought I'd share this one: Source: A random youtube comment.

But not Fergie time.

As you have probably gathered from my posts, I am not too well versed in the sciences. I'll spend an hour or two on youtube tonight when I get home tonight and see if it changes my view. Goes to show that there's something bigger at play than we are equipped to conceive. What is responsible for the intangible? My point was more that we are not separate from the universe, that we are a part of it. As is everything. I like @mjmooney 's post on choice of causality.

I like this one: "It starts now, it didn't begin in the past, there was no past. See, if the universe began in the past when that happened it was now; see, but it's still now — and the universe is still beginning now, and it's trailing off like the wake of a ship from now, and that wake fades out so does the past. You can look back there to explain things, but the explanation disappears. You'll never find it there. Things are not explained by the past, they are explained by what happens Now. That Creates the past, and it begins here."

Please excuse me, is this you being clever, or a straightforward question? I can't tell. When the imam spoke there were no females present. You'll have to excuse my ignorance but I think men and women prayer separately. Maybe that's your point? On the other occasion it was two days after the attack and it was actually mosque open-day, something that had been arranged before the attack. Many females attended.

Seeing as it's set in Chicago I'll go with the latter.

This has me smiling from ear to ear because it's that funny. Might be slightly embarrassing if I gave a sh**. What I wrote makes sense to me. There's parts of the Quran and Bible that didn't make much sense to me, probably because I was lacking context and questioning the interpretation. I got the impression that even if I understood the material correctly that it might be as you put it, nonsensical bullsh**. I'd like to think what I wrote is true. And not in the way you have to take someone else's word for it. Maybe not haha.

My brother put the hard word on me to watch an episode of Shameless. It was weird but I can see the appeal.

This is slightly too intelligent for me to grasp but I'm working on it. Great question and perhaps you won't be surprised that I don't have an answer equally as great, I've got nothing really. My belief (which is far from concrete) would be that God is eternal and infinite. Hence all-knowing. Nothing can possibly escape God. When I say we are God's children I mean that we are not some strangers that are afraid in a world we never made. We are creating it, in every moment. We belong. We are the very fabric of this universe. The source of all light is the eye. The sun would not evoke light without eyes to see it. The universe experiencing itself. God's children.

Maybe you're right. I don't mean necessarily that we are children of a God who sent prophet Muhammad to spread his message or Jesus as our saviour. I like how Ali puts it when he says that you would call him crazy for suggesting that a glass cup, or the building that you reside in, popped into existence from thin air. Something or someone created them. So how then did the sun, the earth, the moon, Jupiter, the stars, the universe, come into being? Our galaxy has hundreds of billions of stars, nearly all of them circled by one planet. The diameter of some are astronomical. Then there are other galaxies. Superclusters of galaxies. The cosmic web, billions and billions of galaxies, millions of light years separating them. What else is out there? Do the same laws of nature exist? Obviously something much wiser than us is responsible for all this. And that, to me, is God. An all-knowing creator. What, sex-ed classes? We had a single sex-ed class which lasted an hour in my entire schooling. That's not what I am talking about either. You're obviously well educated and an avid learner, so I'll have to take your word for it. Maybe your education was different to mine. Primary school through to tertiary education, I've not come across that class.

https://www.atlanticcouncil.org/blogs/iransource/q-a-ex-mossad-chiefs-discuss-the-iranian-threat

Why classes on same sex relationships? We don't have any on personal relationships or heterosexual relationship development. It actually irks me that this movement is given such importance and platform over other things going on in the world. We are all children of God. All of noble birth, offspring to the King of Heaven. The pedigree of our spirit is eternal. I'm not even a religious person. My Mother saw to it that I was to sit out of Religious Education classes. I've attended churches or mosques only a handful of times. Children are smarter than we give them credit for. They absorb the world anew looking for truth with a mind unfiltered. They are free from dogma their elders have inherited. It's no wonder that it's common for teenagers and youth to rebel and resent authority. So often the adult teaches the child that their values are naive and what ought to be. They are experiencing a whirlwind of development and the best we have to offer is instruction and demands on how to play the power game by adult rules. The mind is like a parachute, it only works when it is open. Preconception, expectations, judgement and prejudice only hinder that. That's why the mind of a child is pure. Children don't have an innate disdain for gays, as far as I'm aware. However they absorb the world in abundance and soon learn the behaviours and beliefs. We don't need to bloody indoctrinate kids into the acceptance of same sex love and equality because they have never been the issue in regards to discrimination.

His heart and mind were the real reason he will forever be champion.

Partied Friday and Saturday last week. Everyone was on coke and drinking heavily. I had a couple of drinks over the two nights. It's my birthday this week and my sister and I are having a joint celebration. There no doubt will be coke everywhere again. Not for me though. Personally I don't understand why drugs are illegal. Most people I know who use are not only professionals but damn good and responsible people. I'm not going to judge someone for indulging themselves on the weekend after a long week of hard work. How one chooses to unwind shouldn't be an issue. It's the criminal culture that unravels people. Sure, drugs may not prolong life expectancy but I'm of the view life is about what you can afford socially. When dogma is present and condemning of an activity then people who partake will inevitably develop a level of secrecy and even paranoia surrounding it. I don't really view this as something that makes someone morally corrupt or irresponsible, rather a way of coping with the possible persecution and purgatory. "Only those who will risk going too far can possibly find out how far one can go." My posting that quote is a challenge to societal perspective and prejudice. It's not meant as a challenge for you to go push drug intake to all new levels.

Given your circumstances I would absolutely be building a case for disability support. However, if it's anything like Australia, the system is adversarial and certainly not trying to pay anymore benefits than they have to. Speak to your GP and treating clinicians about writing a support letter for your application. In any interviews you go to, whether job capacity or psychological assessment, highlight what makes it difficult for you. The only hitch I can see you having is that if your condition is unable to be identified categorically by a treating professional then the process will be lengthy.

God has sent Trump to save Israel from Iran? Trump has given birth to a demon by f***ing the Middle East, a long-standing U.S tradition. Perhaps Israel might consider it's laws and treatment of Muslims if saving itself is on the agenda. Iran is fighting for Palestine. Israel wants an apartheid. Over 70% of the United Nations member states recognise Palestine. Yet the 'democratic' West ignores this call for recognition. Hegemony of plutocracy prevails. Was discussing the conduct of Jacinta Ardern yesterday and how she has shown leadership that people respect and admire because it brings them together. Her message to Trump when he asked her what support the USA could offer NZ after the Christchurch attack, was to send sympathy and love to Muslim communities. I have attended a Mosque twice since the attack and the message has been loud and clear, we stand together, all faiths, all people. The imam asked of his audience if Muslims would show other communities the kind of support that has been received since the attack. An interesting touch. "It cannot be a case of all profit, no responsibility" - Jacinta Ardern.