Phi for All

I always thought Paris would be a cool name. He got to see Aphrodite naked and won the love of the most beautiful mortal woman, and it's the name of a major cool city as well. Then Paris Hilton messed it all up for me.

After the fiasco of the Senate healthcare bill, it's clear that the people want some progress from Congress and this administration. I see this list of achievements as positive efforts and I hope it can continue. We need some good news for a change.

To me, the sticking point is having the Taliban go back to the religious schools. We really need to get a concession to build regular schools so the Afghans get a more well-rounded education, or we're just delaying the inevitable. Separating government and religion is great, but if the only schools are religious ones, what difference is there?

Ah, young warrior, many people don't like their first names, or rather they envy someone else's first name. Have you registered over at Sven.com?

I'm going to move this to Homework Help. What have you got so far?

Many of the people I work under contract for wouldn't understand the time and effort I put into this site, since I don't work in a scientific field (I'm a sales and marketing consultant). Even when my contract is specific about results, most of my employers would probably question my work on the forum and I would prefer not to jeopardize those relationships. I know many others here log on while at work, so it could be very detrimental to have their real identity coupled with time-stamped entries. Especially in the US, employers don't give much credence to the idea of taking a quick break from work to refresh your mind with puzzles or music or discussion forums. They're more understanding of a need to pollute your lungs with nicotine than to post a political opinion or read about a scientific discovery.

I'll bump this old thread and see if we can get more names.

I'm Bill.

You do, and it will determine the length of time you have to experience the consequences of it. Omnipotence is no more. You must devise a way to explore faster.

This is a discussion forum, not a soapbox to launch an international campaign for or against anything. Feel free to discuss this subject, especially with regards to how your religion supports or represses corporal punishment, but realize that anyone who disagrees with you is not to be ostracized by a campaign mentality. I'm saying this strictly as a member who knows the rules, for now. I don't see any reason why this subject can't be discussed rationally, but generalizations and blanket condemnations will be under scrutiny. Let's play nice. My daughter hasn't respond well to corporal punishment in the past, so it's not a tool I use anymore. I know kids, especially boys, where it does work in moderation. I think the OP cites some very extreme examples, and I would suggest that perhaps sterner measures should be put in place to combat cases like this in the future, like more severe sentences when punishment results in permanent injury and death. There is a huge difference between a few motivating swats on the backside and a beating that draws blood or worse.

I remember spending a week just reading when I first came here. Eventually you find something to question, you post, you find out it wasn't a dumb question and folks are pretty cool about answering, and then you work your way up to starting your own thread. So thanks for that, it can be really intimidating. Just remember, you can't break anything and no one is allowed to call you ugly (unless the evidence is incontestable).

See? I take away religion and guns and in one fell swoop I get rid of Moontanman, ydoaPs *and* Sarah Palin. I hope you will all welcome me as your Galactic Overlord.

That would be me. I'm starting my galactic Overlord campaign, and I see religion and guns as detrimental to my success. Ironically, it was Sarah herself that convinced me of the necessity.

Dude, seriously? At first I thought you were making some kind of point about human communication but you haven't bothered explaining. Is this really what the membership deserves in a discussion with you?

Jump high enough and the planet should just orbit right out from under you.

I believe there is a higher power but not an omnipotent one that rewards or punishes us based on our actions. I have no problem worshiping women and letting them bestow their bounties on me. The one I worship most has my highest respect and support and I give her all the independence she needs to be happy and productive.

Kari Byron, yum. Two things though: she would insist on wearing the bra and we can't afford her even if she didn't. But this definitely answers the high heels question. Thanks moo. Merged post follows: Consecutive posts merged It would be very cool if there was though. And of course this leaves a lot of area blank for no reason.

Thanks for setting this thread up this way, iNow. I'll be very interested to follow it. My key take-away from this is that too much of politics is concerned with the immediate benefits (which often includes appearing productive to the voters) and not enough with the long-term benefits (which are really what the voters need from their governments). Running a close second, I'm also struck by how powerful we voters are, and how we usually meekly give up that power at election time, choosing instead to allow our votes to support those who will ignore what is good for the people in favor of what is good for special interests. I think what really happened is that change in healthcare happened while change in political policy did not. We got some reform in healthcare but we got it through the same old back-room deal making and partisan stonewall poll-vaulting. I feel like health insurance is like no other business on the planet, and therefore having the government compete against it with a public option won't affect our overall capitalistic view of a market economy. Many Americans view this as the government "running" healthcare, but I view it as something that is of national interest and also something we deserve to give ourselves, like interstate highways that benefit everyone (even if you don't own a car to drive on them, prices on many goods and services you use are lower because they exist). I'm convinced there is a way to have the government hold our healthcare dollars until our doctors need them, and use what the health insurance industry takes as profit to insure everybody with no exemptions for existing conditions. If the politicians in debt to the special interests can be voted out, we can achieve universal healthcare within a very few voting cycles. Mostly though, the voters need to understand why they hold the ultimate power, and why they've got to stop giving it up so easily through ignorance.

It's funny how there aren't any google images of sexy women wearing only a lab coat (yes I checked, so did you). This tells me we've got something fairly unique here. So maybe someone with a pretty, 18-25 year-old brunette/redhead friend or colleague (who has a great smile) could ask if they'd be willing to pose for some pics in just a lab coat (of course they can wear underwear, as long as it doesn't show). We'd need some full body shots (high heels?) and some half body shots (waist up). They'd need to release the photos to us in writing and be our unpaid spokesperson. We'd probably have an account set up for Beryl and use a half body shot for her avatar. How are your photography skillz?

She could be our cyber-spokesperson! We'll call her Beryllium, Beryl for short. She's light-hearted but seriously useful, strong, resistant to flames and not exactly pure. A Beryl of fun. She can't be blond and should definitely wear glasses. I would like two dozen T-shirts, please. Merged post follows: Consecutive posts merged How about Galactic Administrative Overlord?

Is it just the 1% that separates the compassionate, caring, loyal, positive thinking, hard-working father and husband who likes giving back to his community from the brutal, selfish, promiscuous, dishonest crack dealer who beats his wife and kids? Is the "nature" of those two guys really the same?

I only shower once a day unless I'm doing some sweaty work. I think bascule's point in the OP is very valid. If you were to get feces on you anywhere else, would you be content to just wipe it off with paper? I'm not overly fastidious about most things but I even wash my hands with soap and water after cleaning the cat box with a scooper. Why is paper alone good enough for our backsides?

Hi. You should start a new thread to discuss the definition of "alone".

I sympathize with the Tea Party movement as a conceptual attempt by Americans to voice their concerns over what they perceive to be wrong with this country. I just feel like many of those concerns have been tossed onto the original "pile" and get unvalidated acceptance simply because they were voiced by a like-minded entity. It's obvious that many of their concerns have no merit, like not wanting more "czars" who wield unbalanced power over our lives. Many of these concerns are just snow that the ball picked up on its way downhill. Each of these needs to be carefully removed through education, which can't happen if you condemn the movement as a whole, or vow not to take them seriously as a group. Some of their concerns are legitimate, like how the government is bailing out Wall Street bankers. These deals weren't done with the eye towards profit that the auto bailouts were. This is actually one area where the Tea Party could turn against the Republicans if the Reps continue to defend the likes of Goldman Sachs and CitiCorp. And some of the stuff they are against is just partisan grumbling. Blaming Obama for things done under Bush, objecting to proposals originally raised by Republicans but now somehow tainted by Democrat support, these things may never be addressed properly. Get both the left and the right to support third and fourth parties and we may gain some ground there. So I would say yes, there are reasons to take them seriously. Acknowledge their legitimate concerns while pointing out that some of those concerns are just hand-waving designed to either inflame the movement or discredit it. I've been impressed by some of the stances that seemed to cut across party lines, like the banking concerns. The Tea Party has its merits, but like any mob action, it can be mislead by those who know how to spin things their way.

It's too universal. Talk about painting with broad strokes!