All of these subjects have started tearing me up inside. Seeing hateful posts and comments and banners and protests. Seeing people literally tear into each other just because they think differently, because they don't agree. Whatever.

I was raised in the South mostly. Texas girl born and bred. I'm also a military brat. My father was in the Air Force. He served his country for nearly 47 years. We traveled the world. I rarely had a "home" for much longer than 3 years.

I was taught to be respectful to all people. No matter their color (I once took down a General's daughter for racism), no matter their religion (I'm Methodist but visited and enjoyed many different areas of worship), no matter male, female, child, sexual orientation. My own daughter has embraced the gay lifestyle. How that happened isn't anyone's business. I've had to learn a lot. I've had to understand a lot. I never have needed to find a way to love her still, she's my daughter and I love her dearly. She has a lot of problems as a result, but does the best she can, so I can do no less. She's still loving, kind, generous. She does her best to be honorable...how can I not? And no, we don't always get along, but eventually find our way back to each other.

I was also taught from early on in order to gain respect, I must earn respect. To earn that respect, I do my best daily to be thoughtful, courteous, helpful. I tend to slip when I get angry...over hate and stupidity and lack of values and morals. I do my best to just let it go, but sometimes it gets really hard to turn a blind eye to hate and bigotry.

Everyone has the right to their own thoughts and views, as I do. However, I'm pretty sure we all also have the OBLIGATION to be responsible for any actions or hateful words we might throw out. Posting all these threads, shouting to the rooftops all the hate and intolerance and not too many people taking the time to really understand EACH PERSON INDIVIDUALLY....I feel won't solve much of anything.

Sometimes I think all this stuff heaping on us is a precursor to something awful about to happen, and it concerns me greatly. Instead of pushing everyone away, maybe we should be trying to learn and understand? And while we might not totally agree, try to find a way to get along somehow.

Sorry for the length. But this has really gotten to me.

Edit for Valerie: People shouting in protests and all the nasty postings around the net, plus the media and political crud going on. Sorry if you didn't get that point properly. I should have added in a word or two to make it clearer.

ShadowWalker wrote:

skhandotmydroid wrote: choice or not, everyone has their rights.... except corruption, almost all the problems will be solved if people just mind their own business and prioritize freedom & love over religion. people should also use their hearts and brains instead of following news/media and religion.

Thus you violate some peoples rights to follow religion and the media. So you say that other peoples rights are more important than others? You just contradicted the start of your statement.

no, there is a difference, i have no issues with "people" following religion or media but i do have problem with religion and media because both are misleading and people often forget to use their hearts and brains.

@Susy_A

I don't see any shouting in this topic and in fact, most the topics I have
read have been for the most part, of a few members giving their views
in a normal manner.

Granted, there are some times topics, discussions that get heated, to
say the least.

Everyone is entitled to their own opinion and I don't think a few posts
on a make money forum is going to change anyone's way of thinking
about anything.

Such is life.

For the past couple of weeks the Australian ABC local radio's 1:45am book reading has been the brilliant "Fever at Dawn" by Peter Gardos. I've been half-listening to the nightly book reading for years while doing stuff on the computer, but this one has me completely stopping whatever I am doing so I can go & sit on my bed to listen for the next 15 minutes. I was crying halfway through the first evening's quarter-hour reading. I don't know how the book finishes yet (Miklos is still trying to meet Lili in person), so please don't post any spoilers!

Why have I mentioned Fever at Dawn? Because (so far) not only it has shown the terrible & inhumane things that happen when prejudice & hatred take over civilised society, but it has also shown how love, tolerance, acceptance & hope can help heal even the most traumatised of people. To hear the descriptions of the care & love given to the 224 concentration camp survivors by the people of Sweden after the war just makes me wonder, why can't we all be as accepting of the minorities, marginalised & disenfranchised among us?

Why do so many people have to hate/dislike/fear those who aren't like them? It doesn't make the world a better place. It doesn't improve society. It negatively affects the economy as people are not given full opportunity to reach their potential. It impacts the health system through the depression & other mental illnesses that come with being a constant recipient of abuse & prejudice. It increases crime (on both sides) as people start to take matters into their own hands. It just doesn't make any sense at all, apart from some people being able to boast "my tribe's better than your tribe".

Tribalism (including religious tribalism) & nationalism - along with greed possibly the biggest killers of humans over the entire history of human civilisation. Well over 1 billion humans would have died on this planet prematurely through conflict caused by one group of people thinking they are superior to another group of people. When is it going to stop?

Wow

skhandotmydroid wrote:

ShadowWalker wrote:

skhandotmydroid wrote: choice or not, everyone has their rights.... except corruption, almost all the problems will be solved if people just mind their own business and prioritize freedom & love over religion. people should also use their hearts and brains instead of following news/media and religion.

Thus you violate some peoples rights to follow religion and the media. So you say that other peoples rights are more important than others? You just contradicted the start of your statement.

no, there is a difference, i have no issues with "people" following religion or media but i do have problem with religion and media because both are misleading and people often forget to use their hearts and brains.

Why is religion/media misleading? Because you disagree with it. Then it is misleading for you not others. Let me put it this way. Not all people who believe in God see things the same way as religious people but religious have the right to object to the things they object to. Does it give them the right to force their views on others. No. Neither should other people force their views on the religious. Will either group stop? Probably not. If they could learn to be more tolerant and respectful of each other then things would be much better off. Just my humble opinion.

We just came across this video and LGBT people just want us to respect their way of life where they enjoy being in a family Global Society just need to open up

LGBT people just need respect

[/color][/b]

hello plesed to meet you

After there winning right to marry they within months fight over 1% using wrong bathroom. All I need to know to know I never let them wins something. I gone from being ok with them to thinking Muslims got it right they should be stoned to death like adulteresses are. Now if they had waited a few years might of let them do it but months later got me highly upset. Like they took stupid pill. Let them have it what next?

Who is right , who is wrong , what is right today was not right yesterday but can be wrong tomorrov . Who know , it all depend on your education , your place of living , your parent , your friends , your place of work . live another place and you will have another opinion .You are not You but You are what is around You .

What is right , what is wrong , who is normal who is not

NO IDEA AND NOT A GOD TO GIVE YOU ANSWER

Seven billion souls , seven billion different opinion , maybe nobody is right and nobody is wrong

Not so much related but some times I must admit, I wonder if we are a revolving door
and those of us living are no more than particles stuck briefly in time.

For example, they say that the state in which I live in, was at one time and not really
that many hundreds or thousands of years ago, was all swamp. What I am referring
to here is all the world with varying land masses and how that land went from one
thing to another thing over time and NOW seemingly BACK again.

Another example is the extinction of everything. Extinction of animals, plants, etc.
The extinction process has been happening for bookoo years, since the beginning.
One big example is the dinosaurs. The dinosaurs were some of the first to become
extinct that we know of. However, now they are finding many fossils and with those
new finds, in tact DNA in which they can replicate those animals. Will the dinosaur
return?

So what I am saying is, when we look around at everything, wasn't everything once
was? And now that the everything that once was, is either disappeared or disappearing,
doesn't it make you realize how things probably were? In addition, doesn't it make
you think that the beginning is always the end that is always beginning?

PS. Put that in your pipe

that's right, this whole world, including us is nothing more than particles, it all got created accidentally, we were not sent here by someone or for a purpose.

I'm not saying there isn't a God because I do know there is.

What I am saying is I always like to look at all the possibilities and the why's that might exist.

For example in regards to all those drawings carved into rocks, stones, and in pyramids...many
are just way way way out there. Some look like astronauts and some look like electricity and
some look like light bulbs and so on. So it kind of makes one wonder.......we were here, we
weren't here, we started over, someone found a few of our remains....and maybe that is why
the pyramids exist.....so they could get inside there when the next big one hits! I mean
hasn't anyone thought of that, at all?

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