351. Hitchens Debates Rabbi Wolpe on God

Comment #303381 by Laurie Fraser on December 18, 2008 at 3:32 pm

Carto - so brilliant, it deserved to be said twice!

352. 'Tis the Season To Be Incredulous

Comment #303378 by Laurie Fraser on December 18, 2008 at 3:29 pm

Hey Mr D - I've been wondering for a while what your avatar is about.

353. Hitchens Debates Rabbi Wolpe on God

Comment #303372 by Laurie Fraser on December 18, 2008 at 3:24 pm

Now then Brian, you know the rules about personal attacks

354. Hitchens Debates Rabbi Wolpe on God

Comment #303361 by Laurie Fraser on December 18, 2008 at 3:16 pm

Hi Sharon. Thank you. Hi Quine - long time. Unfortunately, the religio/mystical find it hard to disassociate the problem of evil from the retributive power of thanatos.

355. Hitchens Debates Rabbi Wolpe on God

Comment #303356 by Laurie Fraser on December 18, 2008 at 3:12 pm

Comment #303351 by Caudimordax

It's implied all the way through his toxic thought-train, Caudi.

356. 'Tis the Season To Be Incredulous

Comment #303352 by Laurie Fraser on December 18, 2008 at 3:09 pm

Laurie - at least, being in the southern hemisphere, Santa's helpers are generally young females in elf cosumes with short, short shorts and tight tight tops ;-)

357. Hitchens Debates Rabbi Wolpe on God

Comment #303349 by Laurie Fraser on December 18, 2008 at 3:05 pm

Yeah, but the quotes were perfectly apposite.

358. Hitchens Debates Rabbi Wolpe on God

Comment #303345 by Laurie Fraser on December 18, 2008 at 2:59 pm

I thought you were in fine form last night, Brian :)

359. Hitchens Debates Rabbi Wolpe on God

Comment #303343 by Laurie Fraser on December 18, 2008 at 2:58 pm

Read 3428, Caudi - unbelievable.

360. Hitchens Debates Rabbi Wolpe on God

Comment #303340 by Laurie Fraser on December 18, 2008 at 2:56 pm

Comment #303333 by Brian English

Sic 'im, Rex!

EB - fair comment.

361. Hitchens Debates Rabbi Wolpe on God

Comment #303330 by Laurie Fraser on December 18, 2008 at 2:51 pm

Too true, mate.

Brian - ah, scroll up and read DG's last post. I await your fecund wit.

362. 'Tis the Season To Be Incredulous

Comment #303329 by Laurie Fraser on December 18, 2008 at 2:49 pm

And Xmas carols are worse than hymns! All that fucking grovelling and praising. Damn I hate that. With a passion. Be thankful the sun rises after the solstice, be thankful you're alive. Screw heaven and hell.

363. Hitchens Debates Rabbi Wolpe on God

Comment #303323 by Laurie Fraser on December 18, 2008 at 2:43 pm

Comment #303312 by Goldy

That's a great comment, mate. Right to the heart of the issue. Best for your uncle.

364. Hitchens Debates Rabbi Wolpe on God

Comment #303310 by Laurie Fraser on December 18, 2008 at 2:24 pm

Thanks, Caudi. Funny, isn't it? We had a great atheist's funeral and extended wake, yesterday, and then all of the crew at RD.net have posted very kind messages. And we have no moral compass?

365. 'Tis the Season To Be Incredulous

Comment #303303 by Laurie Fraser on December 18, 2008 at 2:18 pm

Comment #303292 by j.mills

Correct, mate. But if we take Christ out, we're left with "mas". Defnition: "the pure celebration of the opportunity to celebrate". I like it.

366. Hitchens Debates Rabbi Wolpe on God

Comment #303296 by Laurie Fraser on December 18, 2008 at 2:13 pm

But if am right then it's not only false that God killed your friend as you put it, it's even false that your friend has died

367. 'Tis the Season To Be Incredulous

Comment #303286 by Laurie Fraser on December 18, 2008 at 2:01 pm

In Australia, we have a much more rational approach to the festive season. The whole joint closes down after the Melbourne Cup, and we don't re-open for business until January 26. If only we could ban ghetto-blasters, Fuller, it'd be perfect.

368. Hitchens Debates Rabbi Wolpe on God

Comment #303279 by Laurie Fraser on December 18, 2008 at 1:55 pm

Heh, heh - Tez, we could go on like this for hours....

369. Hitchens Debates Rabbi Wolpe on God

Comment #303276 by Laurie Fraser on December 18, 2008 at 1:52 pm

Rodin. Pah! A competent blacksmith.

370. Hitchens Debates Rabbi Wolpe on God

Comment #303272 by Laurie Fraser on December 18, 2008 at 1:48 pm

Stone him! Stone him!

371. Hitchens Debates Rabbi Wolpe on God

Comment #303268 by Laurie Fraser on December 18, 2008 at 1:39 pm

Bernini is a pretty boy

372. Hitchens Debates Rabbi Wolpe on God

Comment #303233 by Laurie Fraser on December 18, 2008 at 12:45 pm

Comment #303227 by decius

Sorry, mate - I wasn't asking you to compare them. My ambiguity. I meant more along the lines of "Were these two the greatest artists of all time?" For myself, I'd be easily tempted to say "yes".The Rape of Proserpina is just so strong a work - Pluto's hand gripping her thigh, indenting the flesh. Beyond masterful.

373. Hitchens Debates Rabbi Wolpe on God

Comment #303222 by Laurie Fraser on December 18, 2008 at 12:23 pm

Thanks, Nairb - much appreciated.

Decius - Benini, Caravaggio; the two greatest?

Edit: thanks for the link; I hadn't seen this one. I'll watch it all the way through later today.

374. Giant Dinosaur Fossil Found in Sahara Desert

Comment #303197 by Laurie Fraser on December 18, 2008 at 11:45 am

Now, a 60 feet-long flying carnivore - I'd like to see my kookaburras tangle with THAT!

375. Hitchens Debates Rabbi Wolpe on God

Comment #303194 by Laurie Fraser on December 18, 2008 at 11:41 am

Apropos of nothing at all - a candidate for RD.net "Inspirational Loony of the Year":

http://www.smh.com.au/news/home/technology/my-current-affair-wired-for-action-in-his-backyard/2008/12/18/1229189769741.html

376. Giant Dinosaur Fossil Found in Sahara Desert

Comment #303188 by Laurie Fraser on December 18, 2008 at 11:27 am

Muetze - I sincerely hope you are taking the piss.

377. Hitchens Debates Rabbi Wolpe on God

Comment #303117 by Laurie Fraser on December 18, 2008 at 5:31 am

Right on, Titania.

378. Warning: A Truckload of Stupid

Comment #303113 by Laurie Fraser on December 18, 2008 at 4:56 am

Comment #303111 by Vaal
Comment #303110 by Mark Jones

Brilliant!

379. Hitchens Debates Rabbi Wolpe on God

Comment #303109 by Laurie Fraser on December 18, 2008 at 4:50 am

Thank you, gentlemen, and my condolences to you, Philip. Killer diseases are the perfect refutation to the lie of theism, of course. Theists are lost on two counts: they are incapable of the awe with which the rational regard reality; and they cannot understand how we atheists can also rationalise the horrors of that reality. They need a variety of anthropomorphic constructions to "blame" for their woes; we can simply accept those woes as part and parcel of our evolved condition. There's the difference: we are far, far stronger people than they.

380. Hitchens Debates Rabbi Wolpe on God

Comment #303096 by Laurie Fraser on December 18, 2008 at 4:27 am

Thanks, Titania, Vaal - I'm not maudlin about it; we've all known for some time that Rosie was dying, and we had a lovely, atheist's funeral for her (she insisted on it!) But it did bring home the idiocy of theism to come back on RD.net to see DG trotting out the same nonsense. Death has a way of clarifying things.

Brian - that's more like it! Hume is the Lord, praise be to Hume! (Actually, David Hume is my idea of what a god should be - supremely rational, intuitive, and realistic.)

381. Hitchens Debates Rabbi Wolpe on God

Comment #303086 by Laurie Fraser on December 18, 2008 at 4:02 am

Thanks, guys.

Brian, will you and D.H. just get a room, for chrissake?

382. Hitchens Debates Rabbi Wolpe on God

Comment #303077 by Laurie Fraser on December 18, 2008 at 3:53 am

In this case, Brian, even Titania would approve, I'm sure. A man, a mate, who has been with his wife since they were fourteen, is bereaved, and DG has the blithe effrontery to preach at us about "perfection". I'm in no mood to tolerate it. Death and my friend's terrible suffering dictate that I must stand against the vapid stupidity of all religoids.

383. Hitchens Debates Rabbi Wolpe on God

Comment #303072 by Laurie Fraser on December 18, 2008 at 3:45 am

By the way, Dianelos (sorry, other posters, I'm disobeying my own commandment here, but you'll see why), you never got around to answering my question about how you'd go about explaining god's perfection to my friend who was dying of breast cancer. Well, she died on Tuesday, and we buried her today. The funeral service made not one mention of your idiotic, malevolent, beautiful-woman-killing god, or his pitiful son. Explain breast cancer in terms of the perfection of god's creation, you charlatan.

384. Hitchens Debates Rabbi Wolpe on God

Comment #303066 by Laurie Fraser on December 18, 2008 at 3:39 am

Quetz - don't talk about writing a THIRD book. There are people here (OK, me) who are suffering from a huge inferiority complex because we have yet to write anything at all which is barely publishable. How do you write a book? Tell me, please - I'll pay you the seventy bucks an hour I get from Brian.

385. Hitchens Debates Rabbi Wolpe on God

Comment #303064 by Laurie Fraser on December 18, 2008 at 3:36 am

Comment #303059 by Dianelos Georgoudis

HUGE non sequitur. FAIL. Fuck off, Dianelos, there are intelligent people talking here.

386. Hitchens Debates Rabbi Wolpe on God

Comment #303062 by Laurie Fraser on December 18, 2008 at 3:33 am

Comment #303057 by Brian English

Oh, OK, then - pro bono (again...)

387. Hitchens Debates Rabbi Wolpe on God

Comment #303056 by Laurie Fraser on December 18, 2008 at 3:26 am

Comment #303051 by Cartomancer
"Nadgers" - what a beautiful word!

Comment #303055 by Brian English
$70 an hour (that's mates' rates), and I'm all yours, digger!

388. Hitchens Debates Rabbi Wolpe on God

Comment #303053 by Laurie Fraser on December 18, 2008 at 3:20 am

Brian, Carto, Quetz, Vaal, et al: DO NOT FEED THIS TROLL!!!!!!!!!!

I won't tell you again...

389. Religion in [Australian] schools to go God-free

Comment #302482 by Laurie Fraser on December 17, 2008 at 5:10 am

Comment #301908 by Anvil

*huge applause*

Fucking BRILLIANT, Anvil! (Sorry, sir, I'm pretty tired - but I'll have all the answers in tomorrow.)

390. Hitchens Debates Rabbi Wolpe on God

Comment #302478 by Laurie Fraser on December 17, 2008 at 5:00 am

MMG - yeah, I know; I lived in London for a while, and couldn't understand why the locals couldn't speak their own language!

391. Hitchens Debates Rabbi Wolpe on God

Comment #302461 by Laurie Fraser on December 17, 2008 at 4:28 am

MMG - it's thong as in thong; you know, the things you wear on your feet. Durex is, indeed, sticky (not sticking) tape. :)

392. Hitchens Debates Rabbi Wolpe on God

Comment #302446 by Laurie Fraser on December 17, 2008 at 4:12 am

Comment #302439 by epeeist

1. None - confirmed thong-wearer.

2. See 1.

3. No - all (fortunately) dead.

393. Hitchens Debates Rabbi Wolpe on God

Comment #302426 by Laurie Fraser on December 17, 2008 at 3:25 am

Meanwhile, back in the real world:

http://www.sockandawe.com/

394. Hitchens Debates Rabbi Wolpe on God

Comment #302398 by Laurie Fraser on December 17, 2008 at 2:13 am

Don't believe in trolls, anyway - they're mythical creatures. I just hit the "Ignore" button .

395. Hitchens Debates Rabbi Wolpe on God

Comment #302324 by Laurie Fraser on December 16, 2008 at 10:02 pm

Bendi - however, it's just as coherent, read that way.

396. The Latest Face of Creationism in the Classroom

Comment #302253 by Laurie Fraser on December 16, 2008 at 7:57 pm

Brian...

397. The Latest Face of Creationism in the Classroom

Comment #302248 by Laurie Fraser on December 16, 2008 at 7:44 pm

They enjoyed the dagger to the bowels, apparently. But they would have become much more civilised with the Hellenistic approach to crime and punishment - one could see the deserts of Palestine abloom with hemlock!

398. The Latest Face of Creationism in the Classroom

Comment #302244 by Laurie Fraser on December 16, 2008 at 7:40 pm

Not always stoning, Brian. The goat-herders were fairly creative when they wanted to be, and were open to new ideas. Notice the alacrity with which they took on the Roman practice of crucifixion.

399. The Latest Face of Creationism in the Classroom

Comment #302243 by Laurie Fraser on December 16, 2008 at 7:37 pm

Brian - ignore Shrommer. It's just not worth it.

400. The Latest Face of Creationism in the Classroom

Comment #302240 by Laurie Fraser on December 16, 2008 at 7:36 pm

At least the punishment for homosexuals is laid out clearly in that paragon of peace, the bible - stone 'em!