Homelessness is ๐ข๐ญ๐ธ๐ข๐บ๐ด the result of larger societal problems.
We have enough money, food, and shelter in this country that no one should ever find themselves in want... but we also have billionaires hoarding riches like they're fucking dragons, corporations that don't pay taxes (or worse, pay ๐ฏ๐ฆ๐จ๐ข๐ต๐ช๐ท๐ฆ taxes), employers who routinely steal wages from their employees, supermarkets that throw out food by the dumpster-load, farmers who get paid subsidies to destroy their crops... and thousands upon thousands of houses, condos, and apartments sitting empty because they're worth more money that way, or some oligarch wanted to hide some of their wealth in real estate, or just because everyone who might've lived in them has been priced out of the housing market.
Oh, ๐ข๐ฏ๐ฅ a healthcare system which is predatory to its very core, to the point where one bad day can wipe out a person's savings and put them in so much debt they lose their home to medical bills, and which also regards mental healthcare as a luxury rather than a necessity. Oh, and let's ๐ข๐ญ๐ด๐ฐ not forget racism, homophobia, transphobia, and other assorted bigotry, because marginalized groups make up a majority of the homeless population- and we have Christian "love" to thank for most of ๐ต๐ฉ๐ข๐ต shit. And I'm probably still leaving dozens of other factors out. I'd be shocked stupid if there was a single person in this entire shithole country who's outdoors and is even ๐ฎ๐ฐ๐ด๐ต๐ญ๐บ to blame for that situation.
"Sin," my ass. Unless by "sin" you mean "๐๐ฆ๐ฑ๐ถ๐ฃ๐ญ๐ช๐ค๐ข๐ฏ๐ด ๐ข๐ฏ๐ฅ ๐ฆ๐ฏ๐ฅ-๐ด๐ต๐ข๐จ๐ฆ ๐ค๐ข๐ฑ๐ช๐ต๐ข๐ญ๐ช๐ด๐ฎ."
My insurance denied the surgery I had in February even though the hospital got pre approval. Apparently the sent a form to us by mail that asked if I had other insurance and decided not to pay anything until this piece of paper is returned. Nevermind that we have been paying the premium contracted to cover all four of us, they get to deny claims because they think there might be other insurance involved with no reason whatsoever to think so. Just another hoop to jump through. Next theyโre going to say I am not qualified because I could get insurance through my work and if we want to keep it through my hubsโ insurance we have to at an additional monthly fee to the contracted premiums we already pay. This happened to us before we switched to his insurance. They already denied my MRI because they determined Iโm not high enough risk even though my doctor said I was. Iโm not paying anything until the insurance company gets its head out its ass, theyโll get the paper soon enough.
People who scream bloody murder about hypothetical "government death panels" have evidently never had to deal with an insurance company. Privatization of essential services is always a mistake; profit motives always stand in opposition to the service itself.
I had a right wing crazy Republican congressman during the Obamacare debate and for a few years after it became law. He would go on about โdeath panelsโ. One day I called his office to ask for assistance with something. The young staffer was eager to please and asked what I needed. I said I wanted to be appointed to one of those death panels the congressman had mentioned. Said I thought I would be good at it. But I couldnโt seem to find any info on the internet about how to apply and thatโs what I needed help with.
Hmm. It sounds like they're just immediately denying everything they get, something that's supposed to be illegal but most insurance companies still do. Be careful with these guys, it sure sounds like they're hoping you'll pay for things so they don't have to.
Theyโve been paying everything just fine until this year started. They sent us a form and denied everything because we havenโt returned the form yet. I mailed the form back this week, now that I know they are looking for it, it was just another piece of mail until the bills started rolling in (and my husbandโs responsibility since it required his signature). The problem is, even if I have other insurance, I contracted with them to pay my fucking bills and upheld my end of the contract by paying a family of four premium every month. Anything other insurance is supplemental and not their fucking business.
Iโm not paying anything and Iโm giving my healthcare provider (that I would never have gone to if I had insurance that covered any other provider) notice to try again. Also for the MRI I did find out my great aunt died from breast cancer so I do have the genetic markers to make me high enough risk, especially added to the dense tissue and history of multiple cysts (had two needle aspiration procedures that deflated five or six cysts each and probably could do another anytime as they just keep coming back) Iโm pretty high risk. So hopefully the insurance company will pay for that as well.
And I will not pay additional to be on my hubsโ insurance just because my employer offers insurance too. Iโm already paying for insurance.
That reminds me, I received a questionnaire from my insurer last month. I think they might be trying to decide whether or not to go after Subway from my broken arm.
In high school both of my parents had health insurance through their employers that covered my brother and I. They would file claims with both so that they had to pay nothing out of pocket.
Same here with my knee replacement. My dr. Said this happens all the time, they just donโt want to pay and theyโll do anything to get out of it. Iโm also waiting for the dr. to appeal. The insurance said there was no pre-auth, which is bs. They lie, make up dates, say their records donโt indicate I called to confirm that it would be paid for 100%. This, apparently, is normal operating procedure. Disgusting.
Cast your memory back a mere 25 years. Democrat Bill Clinton left Office with a fiscal surplus. He rectified Bush1 economic mistakes. And made the economy sing. And since Republicans hate nothing more than good times, they gave us Bush2, who made things disastrously worse and left office with the Country facing a collapsed Real Estate market, Financial Markets in disarray, the American Auto industry on the verge of collapse, and the Country facing the 2nd Great Depression, along with 2 disastrous unpaid for 20-year fruitless Wars. So, In comes the Black Democrat. He literally saves the dayโฆ in every respect. Heโs a god-damn miracle worker, (he and Pelosi). They save our ass. They restore solvency to the financial markets, save the Auto Industry while โkeeping America Safeโ. And he manage to get the vast majority of us affordable Health Care for the 1st time in our history. But his greatest miracle was himself, he restored hope to us all when he sang โAmazing Graceโ with his beautiful soul and compassionate voice at a time of National atrocity. But the benighted, racist, and ungrateful among us were not satisfied, so the Republicans gifted us with Donald John Trumpโฆ a literal Adderall-snorting-dumpster fire posing as a human being. And well, you know the rest of the story!
There was a discussion where a Repub condescendingly mansplained to us that the terrible economy under Bush 2.0 is AKSHUALLY Clintonโs fault, because โeveryone KNOWS economic policies take four years to go into effect, so Clinton AKSHUALLY sabotaged the economy for Bush The Second.โ
I had to remind him it was the middle of Bushโs SECOND term. He got very quiet after that.
We had a strange and unusual situation during the Clinton terms. We had frequently had Republican Presidents and Democratic Congresses, or a Republican Senate and a Democratic House. When we had the GOP running Capitol Hill and a Democratic President, coinciding with the post-Cold War reductio. In military spending, we were able to mfg a short-term surplus. It didn't last, as the War on Terror pumped up military spending, again.
If Jesus was a part of an omniscient ghod, why didn't he tell people about germ theory and diseases caused by microbes? We had to learn that stuff on our own.
Jesus said, "Sell your possessions and give to the poor. Provide purses for yourselves that will not wear out, a treasure in heaven that will never fail, where no thief comes near and no moth destroys. Unless you really like those possessions and it's cool shit, like gold, cars and penthouses, then keep it."
Then Thomas said, "Master, what is a car that you speak of."
And Jesus replied, "Get away from me you broke-ass bitch."
Josh was a slacker couch-surfer, in modern terms. He even taught his disciples to do the same. Paul, at least, would put his tent-making skills to use to help his hosts make some money. Ever hear of Josh doing any work to help out his hosts?
But God won't see me if I'm not flying around on a private jet and driving a $50K Tahoe (seemingly the SUV of choice for pastors around my neck of the woods)!!
TBF, $30k station wagons are gone. The only thing left to serve their purpose is a gas-guzling, high-riding SUV that costs more than your parents paid for the house you grew up in.
Mg Dad always bought 9-passenger wagons. The back seats folded down so one could carry cargo. In some models the middle seat also folded down. My Dad would drop me and my bicycle off at my summer job, then continue on to his workplace. I'd ride home after my shift. We would put 11 people in that 9 passenger. These days that wouldn't work, due to car seat regulations.
Jesus was homeless? Which Jesus? As it seems there are thousands of Jesus beliefs. First there are different stories of Jesus in the four gospels all of which appear to have Pauline influence. Then there are stories from gospels not included in the Bible.
Eve ate what, an apple? Apples did not grow in that part of the world. Myths, all myths. You want to use your myth against his myth and show your reasoning is superior? OK, go on but the real root of the problem may be religion itself.
A reflection of their own HEARTS would make some faint.
A reflection of their own minds, yes, but more precisely their own imaginations.
But then, hey, their Bible repeatedly teaches them that their thoughts, emotions, desires, motivations, etc. are all located in their hearts. And the Bible can't be wrong. So sometime in the last couple of thousand years, the mind migrated to the head. I'm sure sin must be responsible.
Are you suggesting that with true Christian love, kindness and charity, I will be smitten? I keep forgetting that the Christianโs god is not the god that JESUS believed in.
And it came to pass, that, as Jesus sat at meat in his house, many publicans and sinners sat also together with Jesus and his disciples: for there were many, and they followed him.
I think there is another reference but I cannot remember where.
"all that tells me is that the bible specializes in contradicting itself ... a LOT"
You would find substantial support for that thesis in the 2006 book "The Bible Against Itself: Why the Bible Seems to Contradict Itself", by Randel McCraw Helms. It's out of print from the publisher but copies are available on line, notably for a reasonable price from Skeptics.com:
Whille America is awash in Christianity, which has caused me to spend most of my attention on the New Testament, Helms provides a lot of eye-openers about the Old Testament as well.
A great deal of those contradictions have been available for a while through the website, "The Skeptic's Annotated Bible." It's author, Steve Wells, does a thorough job of analyzing and dismantling not just the Bible, but the Quran and the Book of Mormon as well. I heartily recommend it.
That's from the King James Version. Here's the NIV one:
"While Jesus was having dinner at Leviโs house, many tax collectors and sinners were eating with him and his disciples, for there were many who followed him."
Jesus was homeless and relied on charity. What sin did he committed ?
Weigand is right but not the way he thinks. If we talk christian language, greed is one of the root causes of homelessness. He shows a perfect example of it.
A mind-numbingly stupid statement, even by the very low standards of the religious right. Who gets to determine what constitutes sin? Him? Judging by the staggering number of Christian tribes in the world there doesn't seem to be any consensus on that question. In my experience the holier-than-thou crowd always has a religious justification for their cruelty.
"to why we have people being mean to other people, it's sin."
I would say that the ultimate sin is being mean to other people, like blaming them for problems that they are not responsible for, including original sin, or not feeding and housing the homeless and the Hungry, as jesus himself advised.
So, it seems that in a very roundabout and perverted and twisted way, weigand is correct. Unfortunately, he doesn't recognize that it's his own REAL sins that are the problem, not the imaginary sins of other people.
According to Weigand, I have committed all sorts of sin, yet I own a house. I imagine most homeowners in Madison have sinned in his eyes. So much for the sin = homelessness theory.
Pratchett for the win again. TBF, I'm not sure if the issue is "thinking about people as things" since "thinking of others as lesser than" seems more accurate, but the point stands all the same.
Deuteronomy 15:11 For there will never cease to be poor in the land. Therefore I command you, โYou shall open wide your hand to your brother, to the needy and to the poor, in your land.โ
Personal charity. Acts of kindness. Everything the church should be doing. Everything Christians should be doing when they see the poor among them.
Yes, there we go. God thinks of the poor and wants us to give to them and help them personally.
Well, yes, but thereโs more context.
Deut. 15: 4 But there will be no poor among you; for the LORD will bless you in the land that the LORD your God is giving you for an inheritance to possessโ 5 if only you will strictly obey the voice of the LORD your God, being careful to do all this commandment that I command you today.
The poor will always be with us, but if we obeyed the commands of God, it says there would be no poor. So what are the commands of God according to the Law that folks like this so often like to use to bash others?
Deuteronomy 15: 1 - Debt Forgiveness every seven years:
Leviticus 19:9 - Food assistance/welfare programs โโWhen you reap the harvest of your land, do not reap to the very edges of your field or gather the gleanings of your harvest. 10 Do not go over your vineyard a second time or pick up the grapes that have fallen. Leave them for the poor and the foreigner. I am the LORD your God.
Deuteronomy 14:22, 28 - a 10% tax on everyone every third year that would be set aside to feed the poor, migrants, and priests (of course... they always got a cut).
Lastly, Leviticus 25:23 - Land reform laws. Land would be returned to the people who originally owned it once a generation.
So there you go, Christians. Yes, you are commanded to be charitable, but only because of your sin in failing to pass and support corporate government-initiated and run efforts to alleviate poverty through direct assistance, land reform, and debt forgiveness.
So kindly remove the log from your own eye, confess and admit your greed and disdain for your fellow man, repent of it, and support government programs to address poverty as you are commanded to.
It's irrelevant. It's nice for moderate Christians that some bible phrases align with their job description, but if it didn't, they'd still have to do their job. If the bible said "screw the poor," it would still be Weigand's job as an elected supervisor to spend tax funding on improving his community.
What an entitled little shit, hiding his innate SADISM behind his โbible.โ Thereโs spirituality, and then there is the SADISM that politicians like this use to mask their corrupt, unconscionable politics. He is an installed puppet, paid by billionaires who want to see this democracy fail. An entitled, POS sadistโpeople should be throwing rotten eggs.
The billionaires don't quite seem to grasp that when the social order breaks down, money ceases to have meaning. Actual goods, materials, and trained labor are what matters.
Billionaires think they will turn the surviving population into their servants. . . A set-up that looks Like Saudi Arabia, UAE or Qatar. If they kill off enough people, perhaps there will be enough clean air and water for them, although I doubt it. All that. BS about โcolonizing Mars? Let them send MAGAts to Mars. Just donโt get on a Musk Rocket with that pipe dream. . .
Yes, I keep coming back to if they suck the middle-class dry as they are doing, who is going to buy their shit they make (or control? (Netflix, Tesla, etc.)
It is, also, about men keeping dominance over women. Adam couldnโt keep control over his first wife Lilith, who was his equal, even wanted to be on top during sex, got her banned and then was given his second wife, Eve, who must obey him.
Which brings up another issue: if Adam already knew about sex before the creation of Eve, how is Eve the original sinner? The Christians have a simple solution, cut that story out of their bible so they can still blame women and promote their world view of the (their) god given view of male superiority. All this done before by King Josiah when he destroyed all the Asherah Poles, got rid of El and his fellow gods and installed YAHWEY as the only Jewish god.
walking through the valley of the shadow of death I shall fear no evil.
Being around bible thumpers is another story though where it is like facing a snake haired gargoyleโmostly men thoughโwhere every snake is spewing the venom of lies, hate and self righteousness.
Maybe Iโm misunderstanding, but if sin was the cause wouldnโt a large chunk of pastors, ministers, congresspeople, Trump and his sycophants be homeless? ๐ค
"Then he [Jesus] will turn to those on his left and say 'Depart from me, you who are cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels. For I was hungry and you gave me nothing to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me nothing to drink. I was a stranger and you did not invite me in, I needed clothes and you did not clothe me, I was sick and in prison and you did not look after me.' They will also answer, 'Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or needing clothes or or sick or in prison, and did not help you?' He will reply, 'Truly I tell you, whatever you did not do for the least of these, you did not do for me."
-- Matthew 25:41-45
Uh oh, Jeffy. Seems you're on the waterslide to the hot place after your earthly existence is done. Your own savior condemns you.
This is the same fucko that nearly had all World Naked Bike Rides in the state banned last year because he said that the law should protect him from having to be offended. A real piece of work this guy
Homelessness is ๐ข๐ญ๐ธ๐ข๐บ๐ด the result of larger societal problems.
We have enough money, food, and shelter in this country that no one should ever find themselves in want... but we also have billionaires hoarding riches like they're fucking dragons, corporations that don't pay taxes (or worse, pay ๐ฏ๐ฆ๐จ๐ข๐ต๐ช๐ท๐ฆ taxes), employers who routinely steal wages from their employees, supermarkets that throw out food by the dumpster-load, farmers who get paid subsidies to destroy their crops... and thousands upon thousands of houses, condos, and apartments sitting empty because they're worth more money that way, or some oligarch wanted to hide some of their wealth in real estate, or just because everyone who might've lived in them has been priced out of the housing market.
Oh, ๐ข๐ฏ๐ฅ a healthcare system which is predatory to its very core, to the point where one bad day can wipe out a person's savings and put them in so much debt they lose their home to medical bills, and which also regards mental healthcare as a luxury rather than a necessity. Oh, and let's ๐ข๐ญ๐ด๐ฐ not forget racism, homophobia, transphobia, and other assorted bigotry, because marginalized groups make up a majority of the homeless population- and we have Christian "love" to thank for most of ๐ต๐ฉ๐ข๐ต shit. And I'm probably still leaving dozens of other factors out. I'd be shocked stupid if there was a single person in this entire shithole country who's outdoors and is even ๐ฎ๐ฐ๐ด๐ต๐ญ๐บ to blame for that situation.
"Sin," my ass. Unless by "sin" you mean "๐๐ฆ๐ฑ๐ถ๐ฃ๐ญ๐ช๐ค๐ข๐ฏ๐ด ๐ข๐ฏ๐ฅ ๐ฆ๐ฏ๐ฅ-๐ด๐ต๐ข๐จ๐ฆ ๐ค๐ข๐ฑ๐ช๐ต๐ข๐ญ๐ช๐ด๐ฎ."
My insurance denied the surgery I had in February even though the hospital got pre approval. Apparently the sent a form to us by mail that asked if I had other insurance and decided not to pay anything until this piece of paper is returned. Nevermind that we have been paying the premium contracted to cover all four of us, they get to deny claims because they think there might be other insurance involved with no reason whatsoever to think so. Just another hoop to jump through. Next theyโre going to say I am not qualified because I could get insurance through my work and if we want to keep it through my hubsโ insurance we have to at an additional monthly fee to the contracted premiums we already pay. This happened to us before we switched to his insurance. They already denied my MRI because they determined Iโm not high enough risk even though my doctor said I was. Iโm not paying anything until the insurance company gets its head out its ass, theyโll get the paper soon enough.
Single payer now!
People who scream bloody murder about hypothetical "government death panels" have evidently never had to deal with an insurance company. Privatization of essential services is always a mistake; profit motives always stand in opposition to the service itself.
โUnlike politicians and doctors, I can admit that we already have death panels; they just prefer to go by the name insurance companies.โ
โJoel Stein, Time, 2009 Aug. 31
I had a right wing crazy Republican congressman during the Obamacare debate and for a few years after it became law. He would go on about โdeath panelsโ. One day I called his office to ask for assistance with something. The young staffer was eager to please and asked what I needed. I said I wanted to be appointed to one of those death panels the congressman had mentioned. Said I thought I would be good at it. But I couldnโt seem to find any info on the internet about how to apply and thatโs what I needed help with.
Iowa's Chuck Grassley was pushing the Death Panels for Granny shtick. He was a statesman, a long time ago. It's sad to see them crash like that.
๐๐๐๐๐๐๐คฃ๐๐คฃ
I've said before, since some bureaucrat is going to get between me and my healthcare, regardless, I'd rather that bureaucrat work for me.
Hmm. It sounds like they're just immediately denying everything they get, something that's supposed to be illegal but most insurance companies still do. Be careful with these guys, it sure sounds like they're hoping you'll pay for things so they don't have to.
Theyโve been paying everything just fine until this year started. They sent us a form and denied everything because we havenโt returned the form yet. I mailed the form back this week, now that I know they are looking for it, it was just another piece of mail until the bills started rolling in (and my husbandโs responsibility since it required his signature). The problem is, even if I have other insurance, I contracted with them to pay my fucking bills and upheld my end of the contract by paying a family of four premium every month. Anything other insurance is supplemental and not their fucking business.
Iโm not paying anything and Iโm giving my healthcare provider (that I would never have gone to if I had insurance that covered any other provider) notice to try again. Also for the MRI I did find out my great aunt died from breast cancer so I do have the genetic markers to make me high enough risk, especially added to the dense tissue and history of multiple cysts (had two needle aspiration procedures that deflated five or six cysts each and probably could do another anytime as they just keep coming back) Iโm pretty high risk. So hopefully the insurance company will pay for that as well.
And I will not pay additional to be on my hubsโ insurance just because my employer offers insurance too. Iโm already paying for insurance.
*NEVER* pay the first bill.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bVIsnOfNfCo
I love my single-payer socialized VA health care. I would be happy to see every American have it, too. It's best for all of us.
That reminds me, I received a questionnaire from my insurer last month. I think they might be trying to decide whether or not to go after Subway from my broken arm.
๐ฟ๐บ
What insurance company do you have?? I want to avoid it at all costs.
In high school both of my parents had health insurance through their employers that covered my brother and I. They would file claims with both so that they had to pay nothing out of pocket.
Same here with my knee replacement. My dr. Said this happens all the time, they just donโt want to pay and theyโll do anything to get out of it. Iโm also waiting for the dr. to appeal. The insurance said there was no pre-auth, which is bs. They lie, make up dates, say their records donโt indicate I called to confirm that it would be paid for 100%. This, apparently, is normal operating procedure. Disgusting.
Itโs ALWAYS Republicans. The cause of, but never the solution to, American problems.
And whiney! But they never have a sensible solution, they just whine!
Cast your memory back a mere 25 years. Democrat Bill Clinton left Office with a fiscal surplus. He rectified Bush1 economic mistakes. And made the economy sing. And since Republicans hate nothing more than good times, they gave us Bush2, who made things disastrously worse and left office with the Country facing a collapsed Real Estate market, Financial Markets in disarray, the American Auto industry on the verge of collapse, and the Country facing the 2nd Great Depression, along with 2 disastrous unpaid for 20-year fruitless Wars. So, In comes the Black Democrat. He literally saves the dayโฆ in every respect. Heโs a god-damn miracle worker, (he and Pelosi). They save our ass. They restore solvency to the financial markets, save the Auto Industry while โkeeping America Safeโ. And he manage to get the vast majority of us affordable Health Care for the 1st time in our history. But his greatest miracle was himself, he restored hope to us all when he sang โAmazing Graceโ with his beautiful soul and compassionate voice at a time of National atrocity. But the benighted, racist, and ungrateful among us were not satisfied, so the Republicans gifted us with Donald John Trumpโฆ a literal Adderall-snorting-dumpster fire posing as a human being. And well, you know the rest of the story!
There was a discussion where a Repub condescendingly mansplained to us that the terrible economy under Bush 2.0 is AKSHUALLY Clintonโs fault, because โeveryone KNOWS economic policies take four years to go into effect, so Clinton AKSHUALLY sabotaged the economy for Bush The Second.โ
I had to remind him it was the middle of Bushโs SECOND term. He got very quiet after that.
We had a strange and unusual situation during the Clinton terms. We had frequently had Republican Presidents and Democratic Congresses, or a Republican Senate and a Democratic House. When we had the GOP running Capitol Hill and a Democratic President, coinciding with the post-Cold War reductio. In military spending, we were able to mfg a short-term surplus. It didn't last, as the War on Terror pumped up military spending, again.
If Jesus was a part of an omniscient ghod, why didn't he tell people about germ theory and diseases caused by microbes? We had to learn that stuff on our own.
Which is just another reason not to look for rationality in religion.
Well said.
PREACH
Enough with this prosperity Bible garbage! IIRC, Jesus was homeless. Did he think of that?
Jesus said, "Sell your possessions and give to the poor. Provide purses for yourselves that will not wear out, a treasure in heaven that will never fail, where no thief comes near and no moth destroys. Unless you really like those possessions and it's cool shit, like gold, cars and penthouses, then keep it."
Then Thomas said, "Master, what is a car that you speak of."
And Jesus replied, "Get away from me you broke-ass bitch."
Ah, yes, but Jesus was homeless on purpose, because he could do anything but stayed homeless anyway.
Thus, homelessness is a choice, y'see.
Checkmate atheists!
I think he snuck back up to heaven at nights, unless he was spending quality time with his favorite apostle(s).
A savior in the streets...
Josh was a slacker couch-surfer, in modern terms. He even taught his disciples to do the same. Paul, at least, would put his tent-making skills to use to help his hosts make some money. Ever hear of Josh doing any work to help out his hosts?
But God won't see me if I'm not flying around on a private jet and driving a $50K Tahoe (seemingly the SUV of choice for pastors around my neck of the woods)!!
TBF, $30k station wagons are gone. The only thing left to serve their purpose is a gas-guzling, high-riding SUV that costs more than your parents paid for the house you grew up in.
Well, when you have 7 or 8 kids, that extra row of seats comes in handy!
BACK IN MY DAY, they didn't have 3rd row seats, we just got tossed around like luggage sitting in the "way back" with the dogs. ;)
Mg Dad always bought 9-passenger wagons. The back seats folded down so one could carry cargo. In some models the middle seat also folded down. My Dad would drop me and my bicycle off at my summer job, then continue on to his workplace. I'd ride home after my shift. We would put 11 people in that 9 passenger. These days that wouldn't work, due to car seat regulations.
Jesus was homeless? Which Jesus? As it seems there are thousands of Jesus beliefs. First there are different stories of Jesus in the four gospels all of which appear to have Pauline influence. Then there are stories from gospels not included in the Bible.
Eve ate what, an apple? Apples did not grow in that part of the world. Myths, all myths. You want to use your myth against his myth and show your reasoning is superior? OK, go on but the real root of the problem may be religion itself.
FWIW, the bible doesn't say it was an apple. Just fruit.
Magical knowledge-filled fruit hanging from a magical tree inhabited by a talking snake.
In some Middle East traditions it's a pomme granate, not an apple.
Just a little English language fuckery for your amusement.
https://www.quora.com/Why-are-pomegranates-called-Indian-apples#:~:text=It's%20a%20fruit%20resembling%20a,places%20where%20the%20fruit%20originates.
That's how Persephone ended up spending 6 months a year in hell. Another woman who should have watched what she ate. :)
Actually, she loves her husband Hades. I have read that Hades was one of the less capricious and more honorable gods.
Also, her mother, Demeter, probably enjoyed the time off not being responsible for keeping everything growing.
That, at least makes sense.
And the fruit depicted in the creationist literature is a large purple raspberry.
It seems every single believer in Jesus and the Bible has a different vision of Jesus which is a reflection of their own hearts.
A reflection of their own HEARTS would make some faint.
A reflection of their own minds, yes, but more precisely their own imaginations.
But then, hey, their Bible repeatedly teaches them that their thoughts, emotions, desires, motivations, etc. are all located in their hearts. And the Bible can't be wrong. So sometime in the last couple of thousand years, the mind migrated to the head. I'm sure sin must be responsible.
Yes, I mean who takes dietary advice from a talking reptile, anyway? That, I hope is yet another translation error.
Which bible? Which myth do you believe?
What do you KNOW?
I KNOW NOTHING.
Carry on like that and youโll get really mythed off.
Are you suggesting that with true Christian love, kindness and charity, I will be smitten? I keep forgetting that the Christianโs god is not the god that JESUS believed in.
The fruit in question wasn't an apple, it was a . . .
Here, I'll let Eve explain it herself:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=imrFn6czYDk&pp=ygUmVGhlIFJlYWwgRm9iaWRkZW4gRnJ1aXQgLSBMdWNpZmVyIHM0ZTU%3D
Obviously, it might be a translation error but
Mark 2:15
And it came to pass, that, as Jesus sat at meat in his house, many publicans and sinners sat also together with Jesus and his disciples: for there were many, and they followed him.
I think there is another reference but I cannot remember where.
And yet there's also:
๐ฝ๐๐ ๐ข๐ ๐๐๐๐๐๐๐, โ๐น๐๐ฅ๐๐ โ๐๐ฃ๐ ๐๐๐๐ ๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐๐ โ๐๐ฃ๐ ๐๐๐ ๐ก๐ , ๐๐ข๐ก ๐กโ๐ ๐๐๐ ๐๐ ๐๐๐ โ๐๐ ๐๐ ๐๐๐๐๐ ๐ก๐ ๐๐๐ฆ โ๐๐ โ๐๐๐.โ
-- Matthew 8:20
And all that tells me is that the bible specializes in contradicting itself ... a LOT
"all that tells me is that the bible specializes in contradicting itself ... a LOT"
You would find substantial support for that thesis in the 2006 book "The Bible Against Itself: Why the Bible Seems to Contradict Itself", by Randel McCraw Helms. It's out of print from the publisher but copies are available on line, notably for a reasonable price from Skeptics.com:
https://shop.skeptic.com/products/the-bible-against-itself-skeptic-exclusive-randel-helms
Whille America is awash in Christianity, which has caused me to spend most of my attention on the New Testament, Helms provides a lot of eye-openers about the Old Testament as well.
A great deal of those contradictions have been available for a while through the website, "The Skeptic's Annotated Bible." It's author, Steve Wells, does a thorough job of analyzing and dismantling not just the Bible, but the Quran and the Book of Mormon as well. I heartily recommend it.
https://skepticsannotatedbible.com/
Considering the number of crazy authors, who all shared their delusions, it was inevitable.
Or, maybe it is an error in believing myths are history.
๐ฏ
That's from the King James Version. Here's the NIV one:
"While Jesus was having dinner at Leviโs house, many tax collectors and sinners were eating with him and his disciples, for there were many who followed him."
Jesus was homeless and relied on charity. What sin did he committed ?
Weigand is right but not the way he thinks. If we talk christian language, greed is one of the root causes of homelessness. He shows a perfect example of it.
A mind-numbingly stupid statement, even by the very low standards of the religious right. Who gets to determine what constitutes sin? Him? Judging by the staggering number of Christian tribes in the world there doesn't seem to be any consensus on that question. In my experience the holier-than-thou crowd always has a religious justification for their cruelty.
Oh, most of them agree any sex they're not having is sin.
They are just jealous!
They are the same ilk as those who justified slavery, so, yes.
They worship a god who has to have your worship or he will burn you forever. In otherwords, their god is a big sadist.
Sin is the cause; the sin of rich bastards hoarding all the money and not sharing or doing anything to make the world a better place.
"to why we have people being mean to other people, it's sin."
I would say that the ultimate sin is being mean to other people, like blaming them for problems that they are not responsible for, including original sin, or not feeding and housing the homeless and the Hungry, as jesus himself advised.
So, it seems that in a very roundabout and perverted and twisted way, weigand is correct. Unfortunately, he doesn't recognize that it's his own REAL sins that are the problem, not the imaginary sins of other people.
The only ones being mean to other people here are Republicans like him.
Exactly my point.
According to Weigand, I have committed all sorts of sin, yet I own a house. I imagine most homeowners in Madison have sinned in his eyes. So much for the sin = homelessness theory.
"...๐ด๐ช๐ฏ, ๐บ๐ฐ๐ถ๐ฏ๐จ ๐ฎ๐ข๐ฏ, ๐ช๐ด ๐ธ๐ฉ๐ฆ๐ฏ ๐บ๐ฐ๐ถ ๐ต๐ณ๐ฆ๐ข๐ต ๐ฑ๐ฆ๐ฐ๐ฑ๐ญ๐ฆ ๐ญ๐ช๐ฌ๐ฆ ๐ต๐ฉ๐ช๐ฏ๐จ๐ด. ๐๐ฏ๐ค๐ญ๐ถ๐ฅ๐ช๐ฏ๐จ ๐บ๐ฐ๐ถ๐ณ๐ด๐ฆ๐ญ๐ง. ๐๐ฉ๐ข๐ต'๐ด ๐ธ๐ฉ๐ข๐ต ๐ด๐ช๐ฏ ๐ช๐ด."
"๐๐ต'๐ด ๐ข ๐ญ๐ฐ๐ต ๐ฎ๐ฐ๐ณ๐ฆ ๐ค๐ฐ๐ฎ๐ฑ๐ญ๐ช๐ค๐ข๐ต๐ฆ๐ฅ ๐ต๐ฉ๐ข๐ฏ ๐ต๐ฉ๐ข๐ต--"
"๐๐ฐ. ๐๐ต ๐ข๐ช๐ฏ'๐ต. ๐๐ฉ๐ฆ๐ฏ ๐ฑ๐ฆ๐ฐ๐ฑ๐ญ๐ฆ ๐ด๐ข๐บ ๐ต๐ฉ๐ช๐ฏ๐จ๐ด ๐ข๐ณ๐ฆ ๐ข ๐ญ๐ฐ๐ต ๐ฎ๐ฐ๐ณ๐ฆ ๐ค๐ฐ๐ฎ๐ฑ๐ญ๐ช๐ค๐ข๐ต๐ฆ๐ฅ ๐ต๐ฉ๐ข๐ฏ ๐ต๐ฉ๐ข๐ต, ๐ต๐ฉ๐ฆ๐บ ๐ฎ๐ฆ๐ข๐ฏ๐ด ๐ต๐ฉ๐ฆ๐บ'๐ณ๐ฆ ๐จ๐ฆ๐ต๐ต๐ช๐ฏ๐จ ๐ธ๐ฐ๐ณ๐ณ๐ช๐ฆ๐ฅ ๐ต๐ฉ๐ข๐ต ๐ต๐ฉ๐ฆ๐บ ๐ธ๐ฐ๐ฏ'๐ต ๐ญ๐ช๐ฌ๐ฆ ๐ต๐ฉ๐ฆ ๐ต๐ณ๐ถ๐ต๐ฉ. ๐๐ฆ๐ฐ๐ฑ๐ญ๐ฆ ๐ข๐ด ๐ต๐ฉ๐ช๐ฏ๐จ๐ด, ๐ต๐ฉ๐ข๐ต'๐ด ๐ธ๐ฉ๐ฆ๐ณ๐ฆ ๐ช๐ต ๐ด๐ต๐ข๐ณ๐ต๐ด."
"๐๐ฉ, ๐'๐ฎ ๐ด๐ถ๐ณ๐ฆ ๐ต๐ฉ๐ฆ๐ณ๐ฆ ๐ข๐ณ๐ฆ ๐ธ๐ฐ๐ณ๐ด๐ฆ ๐ค๐ณ๐ช๐ฎ๐ฆ๐ด--"
"๐๐ถ๐ต ๐ต๐ฉ๐ฆ๐บ ๐ด๐ต๐ข๐ณ๐ต๐ด ๐ธ๐ช๐ต๐ฉ ๐ต๐ฉ๐ช๐ฏ๐ฌ๐ช๐ฏ๐จ ๐ข๐ฃ๐ฐ๐ถ๐ต ๐ฑ๐ฆ๐ฐ๐ฑ๐ญ๐ฆ ๐ข๐ด ๐ต๐ฉ๐ช๐ฏ๐จ๐ด..."
- ๐๐ข๐ณ๐ฑ๐ฆ ๐๐ถ๐จ๐ถ๐ญ๐ถ๐ฎ, by Sir Terry Pratchett.
Pratchett for the win again. TBF, I'm not sure if the issue is "thinking about people as things" since "thinking of others as lesser than" seems more accurate, but the point stands all the same.
Sir Terry restating Kant?
I submit that Sir Terry did a much better job than Kant. Kant had some blind spots he really didn't seem to recognize or deal with well.
I don't doubt you!
Bible study time:
Deuteronomy 15:11 For there will never cease to be poor in the land. Therefore I command you, โYou shall open wide your hand to your brother, to the needy and to the poor, in your land.โ
Personal charity. Acts of kindness. Everything the church should be doing. Everything Christians should be doing when they see the poor among them.
Yes, there we go. God thinks of the poor and wants us to give to them and help them personally.
Well, yes, but thereโs more context.
Deut. 15: 4 But there will be no poor among you; for the LORD will bless you in the land that the LORD your God is giving you for an inheritance to possessโ 5 if only you will strictly obey the voice of the LORD your God, being careful to do all this commandment that I command you today.
The poor will always be with us, but if we obeyed the commands of God, it says there would be no poor. So what are the commands of God according to the Law that folks like this so often like to use to bash others?
Deuteronomy 15: 1 - Debt Forgiveness every seven years:
Leviticus 19:9 - Food assistance/welfare programs โโWhen you reap the harvest of your land, do not reap to the very edges of your field or gather the gleanings of your harvest. 10 Do not go over your vineyard a second time or pick up the grapes that have fallen. Leave them for the poor and the foreigner. I am the LORD your God.
Deuteronomy 14:22, 28 - a 10% tax on everyone every third year that would be set aside to feed the poor, migrants, and priests (of course... they always got a cut).
Lastly, Leviticus 25:23 - Land reform laws. Land would be returned to the people who originally owned it once a generation.
So there you go, Christians. Yes, you are commanded to be charitable, but only because of your sin in failing to pass and support corporate government-initiated and run efforts to alleviate poverty through direct assistance, land reform, and debt forgiveness.
So kindly remove the log from your own eye, confess and admit your greed and disdain for your fellow man, repent of it, and support government programs to address poverty as you are commanded to.
Thus endeth the lesson.
It's irrelevant. It's nice for moderate Christians that some bible phrases align with their job description, but if it didn't, they'd still have to do their job. If the bible said "screw the poor," it would still be Weigand's job as an elected supervisor to spend tax funding on improving his community.
That's Old Testament stuff. Old dispensation. Christians pick and choose from the OT. You need some NT quotes in favor of charity.
What an entitled little shit, hiding his innate SADISM behind his โbible.โ Thereโs spirituality, and then there is the SADISM that politicians like this use to mask their corrupt, unconscionable politics. He is an installed puppet, paid by billionaires who want to see this democracy fail. An entitled, POS sadistโpeople should be throwing rotten eggs.
The billionaires don't quite seem to grasp that when the social order breaks down, money ceases to have meaning. Actual goods, materials, and trained labor are what matters.
Billionaires think they will turn the surviving population into their servants. . . A set-up that looks Like Saudi Arabia, UAE or Qatar. If they kill off enough people, perhaps there will be enough clean air and water for them, although I doubt it. All that. BS about โcolonizing Mars? Let them send MAGAts to Mars. Just donโt get on a Musk Rocket with that pipe dream. . .
Venus.
Yes, I keep coming back to if they suck the middle-class dry as they are doing, who is going to buy their shit they make (or control? (Netflix, Tesla, etc.)
It is, also, about men keeping dominance over women. Adam couldnโt keep control over his first wife Lilith, who was his equal, even wanted to be on top during sex, got her banned and then was given his second wife, Eve, who must obey him.
Sadism.
Yes, always, was and still is.
Which brings up another issue: if Adam already knew about sex before the creation of Eve, how is Eve the original sinner? The Christians have a simple solution, cut that story out of their bible so they can still blame women and promote their world view of the (their) god given view of male superiority. All this done before by King Josiah when he destroyed all the Asherah Poles, got rid of El and his fellow gods and installed YAHWEY as the only Jewish god.
๐ฏ
walking through the valley of the shadow of death I shall fear no evil.
Being around bible thumpers is another story though where it is like facing a snake haired gargoyleโmostly men thoughโwhere every snake is spewing the venom of lies, hate and self righteousness.
For there to be spirituality, there'd have to be spirits. As an atheist I don't buy those.
Yeah, but elsewhere in this comment section you don't buy paying for infrastructure with taxes, so your opinion is lacking in my eyes.
I'll buy spirits whenever I need to restock the bar.
As is good, and 'proper'.
Well, if those homeless didn't want to be homeless, they should just buy houses. It's just sloth on their part.
โIt is no concern of mine whether your family hasโฆ what was it again?โ
โUhmโฆ food?โ
โHA! You really should have thought of that before you became peasants!!โ
Maybe Iโm misunderstanding, but if sin was the cause wouldnโt a large chunk of pastors, ministers, congresspeople, Trump and his sycophants be homeless? ๐ค
Nah, when they are concerned it's always someone else fault. They are innocent anus dei.
Hey, Weigand...
"Then he [Jesus] will turn to those on his left and say 'Depart from me, you who are cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels. For I was hungry and you gave me nothing to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me nothing to drink. I was a stranger and you did not invite me in, I needed clothes and you did not clothe me, I was sick and in prison and you did not look after me.' They will also answer, 'Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or needing clothes or or sick or in prison, and did not help you?' He will reply, 'Truly I tell you, whatever you did not do for the least of these, you did not do for me."
-- Matthew 25:41-45
Uh oh, Jeffy. Seems you're on the waterslide to the hot place after your earthly existence is done. Your own savior condemns you.
Weigand seems to be wearing clothes of mixed fabric. And I'll bet he hasn't given all his worldly goods away. Smite him!
Iโll bet you he also eats shellfish and meat mixed with dairy!
And pork roast......
This is the same fucko that nearly had all World Naked Bike Rides in the state banned last year because he said that the law should protect him from having to be offended. A real piece of work this guy
Werenโt Adam and Eve homeless right from the beginning? They lived in a fucking garden!
Squatters.