Vagueness and the Aftermath - A sporadic diary

[Claw75]

when we were in Berlin last year, Dan and I noticed that German dogs very much make a 'woof woof' sound.  Quite amusing, if you're easily tickled.

[celtic]

when we were in Berlin last year, Dan and I we noticed that German dogs very much make a 'woof woof' sound.  Quite amusing, if you're easily tickled.

Surely it would be voof voof?

[millidonk]

No idea what that means!

 How many languages have you studied? Always jealous of cunning linguists.

Think it was I have a car or I have a big lorry or something.

Only language I studied at school was German at GCSE. (Got a B)

The others I learned in the RAF but took all my exams at Westminster university as they run the MODLEB (Ministry of Defence Language board) http://www.westminster.ac.uk/business/short-courses-and-training/specialised-language-examinations/modleb/exam-info It looks like they changed the scoring last year as I imagine it was too hard (minimum pass grade for military personnel was 75%). When i was in there were 4 levels. 1 - Survival, 2 - operational, 3 - advanced and 4 - bilingual.

Russian I only trained to level 2 and obtained level 2 across the board.
Farsi I trained to level 4 (which is the equivalent to a degree in 18 months) I got 4 in speaking and writing and 3 in listening and reading. Speaking and writing are considered active diciplines and that's where I have always excelled. Like anything, the less you do the worse you get (skillfade), these days I only ever really speak Farsi to Ronaldo or James when I see either of them in DTD, so it's fair to say I have forgotten a fair bit.

[kinboshi]

Okii kuruma ga arimasu would be I have a big car.

Useful sentence to know

[RED-DOG]

Okii kuruma ga arimasu would be I have a big car.

Useful sentence to know

Mi kuckaroo's screeve si dusta bori den tiro. So there!

[david3103]

@RedsGirl

This website lets you see how big (or small) Glastonbury is by showing where the fence would be if you lived slap in the middle of it.

http://howbigreally.com/dimension/festivals_and_specticles/glastonbury#ts19_7st

[MANTIS01]

What is the benefit of being an atheist instead of an agnostic?

If God did create us he also created the science and the room for sceptisism. If he wanted a test of faith he would deffo make it awkward and challenging.

Seems kinda arrogant to think we know everything for certain. There are new surprises we discover even on our small planet every day, eg a new species of insect we never knew existed before.

Being an atheist is like saying there is no possibility of a new surprise/discovery/answer, when clearly there is always a possibility.

[RED-DOG]

What is the benefit of being an atheist instead of an agnostic?

If God did create us he also created the science and the room for sceptisism. If he wanted a test of faith he would deffo make it awkward and challenging.

Seems kinda arrogant to think we know everything for certain. There are new surprises we discover even on our small planet every day, eg a new species of insect we never knew existed before.

Being an atheist is like saying there is no possibility of a new surprise/discovery/answer, when clearly there is always a possibility.

Nice argument, I like it.


One of the great mysteries for me is why do things like lichens live? Why do they possess such intricate mechanisms to preserve their existence?

[millidonk]

What is the benefit of being an atheist instead of an agnostic?

If God did create us he also created the science and the room for sceptisism. If he wanted a test of faith he would deffo make it awkward and challenging.

Seems kinda arrogant to think we know everything for certain. There are new surprises we discover even on our small planet every day, eg a new species of insect we never knew existed before.

Being an atheist is like saying there is no possibility of a new surprise/discovery/answer, when clearly there is always a possibility.

For balance I don't like it.

It's just as arrogant for people to say there IS a God when they literally have no proof at all.

Agnostic is too on the fence for me, "we don't know and might not ever know..." that's fair enough but not very committed. "there is no god" is much more realistic.

[kinboshi]

What is the benefit of being an atheist instead of an agnostic?

If God did create us he also created the science and the room for sceptisism. If he wanted a test of faith he would deffo make it awkward and challenging.

Seems kinda arrogant to think we know everything for certain. There are new surprises we discover even on our small planet every day, eg a new species of insect we never knew existed before.

Being an atheist is like saying there is no possibility of a new surprise/discovery/answer, when clearly there is always a possibility.

Looks like you're applying your own interpretation of the word 'atheist'. 

http://rationalwiki.org/wiki/Atheist_fundamentalism

For me, I have seen no evidence for the existence of a god, but if god popped up and started speaking to me (and others, as otherwise I'd think it's some form of hallucination most probably), and showed real and substantive evidence for his existence - then of course I'd believe he's real.  To say atheists think they 'know everything for certain' is incorrect on two counts.  One, the term 'atheism' means "the absence of belief in the existence of gods" - no more, no less.  Two, the scientific method (of which many, but not all, atheists subscribe to) is exactly the opposite of an arrogance of 'knowing everything for certain'. It's about challenging accepted theories and finding new evidence that either supports or discredits those theories.  That's diametrically opposed to 'faith' which is arrogant in that it ignores any evidence, and no matter what is said their 'belief' trumps all.

When I say there's no god, I'm actually saying "based on the evidence, I'm pretty certain that there isn't a god, and if there is he's bloody good at hide and seek and he's also a pretty nasty bastard as well."

The position of an agnostic, saying there might or might not be a god is a strange one really for me - as the evidence heavily suggests that there isn't, and many agnostics I know are clinging on to a religion they were indoctrinated in when they were young.

[millidonk]

Boshi pretty much said what I was trying to say.

btw yesterday I learned that the plural of census is censuses. Sounds so wrong when you say it.

[kinboshi]

Boshi pretty much said what I was trying to say.

btw yesterday I learned that the plural of census is censuses. Sounds so wrong when you say it.

Nonsensical censuses nonsense itt.

[doubleup]

What is the benefit of being an atheist instead of an agnostic?

If God did create us he also created the science and the room for sceptisism. If he wanted a test of faith he would deffo make it awkward and challenging.

Seems kinda arrogant to think we know everything for certain. There are new surprises we discover even on our small planet every day, eg a new species of insect we never knew existed before.

Being an atheist is like saying there is no possibility of a new surprise/discovery/answer, when clearly there is always a possibility.

Did he also think it was a good idea to let fuckwits kill millions of people in the name of religion?  Is that a test as well?

I think I'll just acept that there isn't a god and that the human race should try harder to evolve their minds.

[MANTIS01]

Religion is based on faith so if god was to show indisputable evidence faith would no longer exist. If I were god I wouldn't see the motivation in obliterating the concept of faith to appear on earth and go...ta dah!

Also I don't know why people expect god to keep popping up and intervening in our affairs all the time. If you create something that's free and you create people with a free mind then you leave them alone to exist freely and make their own choices. If he jumped in every time there was a war people would be just puppets on a string with god controlling what happens at every turn. And that would be like god playing with plasticine.

[Jon MW]

Religion is based on faith ...

Major religions now involve faith, but it's not necessary for a religion to exist; a religion is just the organised formation of worshiping a deity.

Being able to physically see the deity in the flesh would be irrelevant.