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#21 | |
ONE
love, blood, life Join Date: Oct 2000
Location: Toronto, Ontario
Posts: 11,782
Local Time: 12:17 PM
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Melon ------------------ "He had lived through an age when men and women with energy and ruthlessness but without much ability or persistence excelled. And even though most of them had gone under, their ignorance had confused Roy, making him wonder whether the things he had striven to learn, and thought of as 'culture,' were irrelevant. Everything was supposed to be the same: commercials, Beethoven's late quartets, pop records, shopfronts, Freud, multi-coloured hair. Greatness, comparison, value, depth: gone, gone, gone. Anything could give some pleasure; he saw that. But not everything provided the sustenance of a deeper understanding." - Hanif Kureishi, Love in a Blue Time |
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#22 | |
Rock n' Roll Doggie
Band-aid Join Date: Nov 2000
Posts: 4,970
Local Time: 11:17 AM
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Quote:
However, if you think that Melon is an innocent in all this, I'm wondering what posts you have been reading. It is not the fact that he has different opinions that get some of us going; it is the way he presents them. One of the reasons I and several others get miffed with Melon is because of his constant boasting about his intelligence. Believe me, when you're in a debate with him, he often does indeed come off sounding arrogant and superior. So no, I will not get off his case about that. Another thing that you may not be aware of, and of specific concern for me, is that Melon has a real anger and hatred toward fundamental Christianity. He has started thread after thread in which he has railed on and attacked fundamentalist Christianity. It is a constant for him, and sometimes it gets quite ugly. Since I consider myself a fundamentalist, it of course upsets me. Everyone knows I do not agree with Islam, Hinduism, and other religions. But everyone also knows I respect others' views enough not to start threads that lash out on the religions. |
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#23 |
ONE
love, blood, life Join Date: Oct 2000
Location: Toronto, Ontario
Posts: 11,782
Local Time: 12:17 PM
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New:
* Is it better to go out with a bang or to just fade away? Is a "bang," however, less effective because people nearly expect it nowadays? Can a slowly calculated idea somehow be more effective than throwing out all your proverbial weaponry at once? * Is pettiness inherent within human nature or just the internet? Can people sincerely enjoy a conversation where they disagree vehemently with everything the opponent states? Can one be fervently religious while also being a pupil of science and rationalism? Or should one feel compelled to choose? Lurkers...post here. I'm telling you right now that you are smart enough to be in "Free Your Mind," and if any asshole starts bullying you around, I will smack them up. Most assuredly. Melon ------------------ "He had lived through an age when men and women with energy and ruthlessness but without much ability or persistence excelled. And even though most of them had gone under, their ignorance had confused Roy, making him wonder whether the things he had striven to learn, and thought of as 'culture,' were irrelevant. Everything was supposed to be the same: commercials, Beethoven's late quartets, pop records, shopfronts, Freud, multi-coloured hair. Greatness, comparison, value, depth: gone, gone, gone. Anything could give some pleasure; he saw that. But not everything provided the sustenance of a deeper understanding." - Hanif Kureishi, Love in a Blue Time [This message has been edited by melon (edited 11-26-2001).] |
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#24 |
ONE
love, blood, life Join Date: Oct 2000
Location: Toronto, Ontario
Posts: 11,782
Local Time: 12:17 PM
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In case anyone has noticed, I'm attempting to get people to think here. Discuss. This is a thread on philosophy. But I'm verily disappointed so far.
As for the issue of "boasting" or "arrogance," it's a dead issue. Move on. Melon ------------------ "He had lived through an age when men and women with energy and ruthlessness but without much ability or persistence excelled. And even though most of them had gone under, their ignorance had confused Roy, making him wonder whether the things he had striven to learn, and thought of as 'culture,' were irrelevant. Everything was supposed to be the same: commercials, Beethoven's late quartets, pop records, shopfronts, Freud, multi-coloured hair. Greatness, comparison, value, depth: gone, gone, gone. Anything could give some pleasure; he saw that. But not everything provided the sustenance of a deeper understanding." - Hanif Kureishi, Love in a Blue Time |
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#25 |
Refugee
Join Date: Aug 2000
Location: Illinois, USA
Posts: 1,284
Local Time: 10:17 AM
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Ned Flanders: And Harry Potter, and all his friends.... went to hell for practicing witchcraft! (throws book into fire)
Todd: YAY!!! ------------------ Change is the only constant |
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#26 |
War Child
Join Date: Jan 2001
Location: Knoxville, TN, USA
Posts: 684
Local Time: 10:17 AM
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On Harry Potter:
I've never read the books or seen the movie, but I don't feel like Christians should have a problem with them. It's fantasy, and I think that's the way kids look at it. When watching re-runs of Bewitched when I was a kid, I never once thought "Hey, maybe I can learn some spells and clean my room by wiggling my nose". The Bible does condemn sorcery, mediums, and the like, but I don't think that's what this is. I don't think the "magic" in THe Lord of the Rings or The Chronicals of Narnia is "evil" either. I just don't see Harry Potter leading kids into the practice of witchcraft. Maybe that's naive. I don't think my pastor has any problem with Harry P. Melon, maybe you should join us conservative evangelicals ![]() On "God Bless America": The phrase doesn't lead me to the "holy war" connection, but it does bother me a bit. It's fine for people to ask God to bless this country, but I get the impression that some people think we are somehow "deserving" of God's blessing because a horrible act was committed against us. This is most definitely not the case. Also, I think this phrase is usually used as a statement of love of country, when I think it really ought to be a statement of faith in God. On Pettiness: I say it's inherent within human nature, and if not inherent, then it's just wicked pervasive. It takes constant effort to be nice. On People Sincerely Enjoying a Conversation Where They Disagree Vehemently with Everything the Opponent States: I think it depends on the people. Some people just hate conflict too much to be able to enjoy a conversation like that. I think it's possible for me. I think one of the big problems of a forum like "Free Your Mind" is that people feel like a discussion isn't complete until their "opponent" concedes victory. Things get beaten to death because no one will drop it until they "win" the argument, which rarely happens. I say, state your views, read others' views, comment on others' views if you want, maybe clarify your views, but realize that in the end you will still disagree with someone in here. And that's ok. Disclaimer: My comments, particularly on the first two topics, are made from a Christian viewpoint. Meaningless Statement: Remember the Jelly Doughnut! Name: Spiral Staircase |
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#27 |
Acrobat
Join Date: Nov 2001
Location: foray's kitchen drawer
Posts: 431
Local Time: 04:17 AM
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melon, if this is another of your stunts to just rouse people, to simply generate discussion without claiming responsibility (you haven't replied to my post, for instance)... then I would think three times before replying to your posts, in the future. I'm a little disappointed now; it seems to me that you do agitate just for the sake of agitating or garnering responses. Is this really true? Sigh.
me. |
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#28 | |
Rock n' Roll Doggie
VIP PASS Join Date: Dec 2000
Location: the Netherlands
Posts: 6,163
Local Time: 05:17 PM
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#29 |
Rock n' Roll Doggie
VIP PASS Join Date: Dec 2000
Location: the Netherlands
Posts: 6,163
Local Time: 05:17 PM
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Topic ? I can`t make a choice. Or are you the topic ? Anyway, just make a smart remark and we can walk on.
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#30 | |
Banned
Join Date: Apr 2002
Location: SI, NY, USA
Posts: 1,189
Local Time: 04:17 PM
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------------------ Kennedy |
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#31 |
Refugee
Join Date: Jun 2001
Location: London, UK
Posts: 1,538
Local Time: 04:17 PM
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I for one don't really consider Melon's comments at all that arrogant or self-praising. At the end of the day, we are all exceedingly arrogant in our little (or in my case, GRAND) ways. If he is being arrogant, which I doubt, then thats good for him; he has the guts to admit to such arrogance and promote it. Before we can be acquainted with virtue, we must be acquainted with vice... I think the Marquis de Sade said that once. Anyway, I digress.
Even if he was being arrogant, the point is, he didn't call anyone stupid, so what is the big deal? I will now concern myself with his questions, some which are rather interesting. on HARRY POTTER; I absolutely adore the Harry Potter books. I think they're amazing (though the film was quite disappointing) and wonderfully entertaining. Yes, more entertaining (and at times, more poignant) than the Bible. Anyone is entitled to thinking it to be Boring with a capital B, but I think the notion that its evil is ludicrous. on GOD BLESS AMERICA; Well, its always been something the US president said anyway, by custom, isn't it? I don't think Mr.Bush, or anyone else for that matter (except the Taliban) would like to make this war 'holy'. The fact that there are many Islamic dissidents making this war a 'jihad' or holy war, is disturbing and a way to make more muslims fight against christians. They're trying to make everything black and white, something which is quite dangerous in the world of various shades of grey. So no, I don't think anyone on THIS side of the political framework is trying to make it seem like a holy war. on PETTINESS; Melon, I do think everyone has pettiness. When you claim to have found pettiness in others, others will claim that they have found 'arrogance' in you. What's the point of thinking oneself different in those terms? We're all petty human beings. We're all lined up for the crack of the guillotine. on the NATURE OF DEBATE; I adore contradicting myself and others. I adore debating, because it should be a way of educating yourself and others. I sincerely believe that people who don't know enough about a situation shouldn't form opinions, it stands to reason. In this day and age in particular, opinions are very important things, the more educated the opinion is, the better. on WHETHER ITS BETTER TO GO WITH A BANG OR FADE AWAY; I would hate to fade away. If I'm going to die (something I very much dread)I would like to go with a bang (except the bang of a gun shot, I don't want to be shot to death). I want a poetic death. Dramatic and hysterical, sort of like Clare Quilty's in LOLITA, without the gun-shots. Melon, what do you think? Ant. |
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#32 | ||||
ONE
love, blood, life Join Date: Oct 2000
Location: Toronto, Ontario
Posts: 11,782
Local Time: 12:17 PM
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n. pl. ad·den·da (-d) Something added or to be added, especially a supplement to a book. And don't feel stupid. Melon ------------------ "He had lived through an age when men and women with energy and ruthlessness but without much ability or persistence excelled. And even though most of them had gone under, their ignorance had confused Roy, making him wonder whether the things he had striven to learn, and thought of as 'culture,' were irrelevant. Everything was supposed to be the same: commercials, Beethoven's late quartets, pop records, shopfronts, Freud, multi-coloured hair. Greatness, comparison, value, depth: gone, gone, gone. Anything could give some pleasure; he saw that. But not everything provided the sustenance of a deeper understanding." - Hanif Kureishi, Love in a Blue Time |
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#33 | |
ONE
love, blood, life Join Date: Oct 2000
Location: Toronto, Ontario
Posts: 11,782
Local Time: 12:17 PM
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Quote:
But just my luck, I'd get banned, so I'll just leave it at that. Melon ------------------ "He had lived through an age when men and women with energy and ruthlessness but without much ability or persistence excelled. And even though most of them had gone under, their ignorance had confused Roy, making him wonder whether the things he had striven to learn, and thought of as 'culture,' were irrelevant. Everything was supposed to be the same: commercials, Beethoven's late quartets, pop records, shopfronts, Freud, multi-coloured hair. Greatness, comparison, value, depth: gone, gone, gone. Anything could give some pleasure; he saw that. But not everything provided the sustenance of a deeper understanding." - Hanif Kureishi, Love in a Blue Time |
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#34 | |
ONE
love, blood, life Join Date: Oct 2000
Location: Toronto, Ontario
Posts: 11,782
Local Time: 12:17 PM
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The internet, to me, has seemingly replaced human interaction in so many instances. We've also become maddeningly dependent on a computer network that seemingly runs at a snail's pace, feeds us a bunch of unwanted ads, and, while broadening our horizons world-wide, it can isolate you from the real world. But, honestly, as much as I've complained about it, I could not imagine life without it. I've used it to make my life better, but I almost think I've hit a point where I think I am better off cutting myself from it. Like a fetus which requires an umbilical cord for live in-utero, that same lifeline is cut upon birth, otherwise that same newborn would die. Plus, I cannot but lament the fact that this forum has increasingly pissed me off, not because of disagreement with what I write, but because of all the personal attacks and two-faced activities in Interference. And it's not just this post. It's been several, and I cannot help but wonder what they would do if I similarly went on a personal attack spree unprovoked in their posts. One must ask, at some point, as to whether it is all worth it? Melon ------------------ "He had lived through an age when men and women with energy and ruthlessness but without much ability or persistence excelled. And even though most of them had gone under, their ignorance had confused Roy, making him wonder whether the things he had striven to learn, and thought of as 'culture,' were irrelevant. Everything was supposed to be the same: commercials, Beethoven's late quartets, pop records, shopfronts, Freud, multi-coloured hair. Greatness, comparison, value, depth: gone, gone, gone. Anything could give some pleasure; he saw that. But not everything provided the sustenance of a deeper understanding." - Hanif Kureishi, Love in a Blue Time |
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#35 | |
ONE
love, blood, life Join Date: Oct 2000
Location: Toronto, Ontario
Posts: 11,782
Local Time: 12:17 PM
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Quote:
Melon ------------------ "He had lived through an age when men and women with energy and ruthlessness but without much ability or persistence excelled. And even though most of them had gone under, their ignorance had confused Roy, making him wonder whether the things he had striven to learn, and thought of as 'culture,' were irrelevant. Everything was supposed to be the same: commercials, Beethoven's late quartets, pop records, shopfronts, Freud, multi-coloured hair. Greatness, comparison, value, depth: gone, gone, gone. Anything could give some pleasure; he saw that. But not everything provided the sustenance of a deeper understanding." - Hanif Kureishi, Love in a Blue Time |
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#36 | |
ONE
love, blood, life Join Date: Oct 2000
Location: Toronto, Ontario
Posts: 11,782
Local Time: 12:17 PM
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Quote:
My style of debate and writing is, actually, heavily influenced by a high school religion teacher I had. He knew the right buttons to push to make me think, and I still don't know what ideology he prescribes to in reality. Melon ------------------ "He had lived through an age when men and women with energy and ruthlessness but without much ability or persistence excelled. And even though most of them had gone under, their ignorance had confused Roy, making him wonder whether the things he had striven to learn, and thought of as 'culture,' were irrelevant. Everything was supposed to be the same: commercials, Beethoven's late quartets, pop records, shopfronts, Freud, multi-coloured hair. Greatness, comparison, value, depth: gone, gone, gone. Anything could give some pleasure; he saw that. But not everything provided the sustenance of a deeper understanding." - Hanif Kureishi, Love in a Blue Time |
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#37 | |
Rock n' Roll Doggie
Band-aid Join Date: Nov 2000
Posts: 4,970
Local Time: 11:17 AM
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Quote:
You may be smart, so what? We know that by now - you have told us no less than 5 times. Why do you have to keep reminding us of that by proclaiming it? Shouldn't your intelligence speak for itself? But maybe I should just let it go. I don't know why it bugs me so much, but it does. People who brag about their intellignce has always gotten under my skin. It just bugs me to no end, and that is why I feel I must say something everytime you do it. In a weird way, my strange compulsion to jump on you for that is every bit as strong as your strange compulsion to do it. But it's not my job to change someone's personality into something that is more pleasant to me. I couldn't do it even if it were my job. Sadly, I think I will always bug you, and you will always bug me. Ah well, such is life. Not everyone gets along swimmingly. I am going to make every effort now to let it go. [This message has been edited by 80sU2isBest (edited 11-26-2001).] |
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#38 | |
ONE
love, blood, life Join Date: Oct 2000
Location: Toronto, Ontario
Posts: 11,782
Local Time: 12:17 PM
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Quote:
But I cannot help still getting mad over it. An archeology art exhibit on lesbian frescoes unearthed in Italy from the Roman era was suppressed for more than half a century because the Vatican disliked it. My favorite deluded comment was, "It could make even the most chaste tempted to sin." And I could only just drop my head in disbelief. Are we so obsessed with social control and sugar-coating our past that we cannot handle the truth? Do we have so little faith in mankind that we expect people to become lesbians because of ancient frescos? Do we have so little faith in mankind that we expect people to become witches after reading Harry Potter? And perhaps this is what puts me at odds with many of my fellow Christians. I give people credit for being able to choose what is right and wrong. And I think it would be interesting if you ever did argue with my priest. He probably would never expect it. ![]() Melon ------------------ "He had lived through an age when men and women with energy and ruthlessness but without much ability or persistence excelled. And even though most of them had gone under, their ignorance had confused Roy, making him wonder whether the things he had striven to learn, and thought of as 'culture,' were irrelevant. Everything was supposed to be the same: commercials, Beethoven's late quartets, pop records, shopfronts, Freud, multi-coloured hair. Greatness, comparison, value, depth: gone, gone, gone. Anything could give some pleasure; he saw that. But not everything provided the sustenance of a deeper understanding." - Hanif Kureishi, Love in a Blue Time |
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#39 | |||||||
ONE
love, blood, life Join Date: Oct 2000
Location: Toronto, Ontario
Posts: 11,782
Local Time: 12:17 PM
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But I have considered a new denomination, but I don't like most of them, due to doctrine issues, which I am pretty close in agreement with Catholicism. It's the social stances I end up having problems with. I would likely end up creating my own Christian denomination, but, considering I'm Catholic in upbringing, that is harder than, say, I had been brought up Protestant. Whether I'd like to admit it or not, I'm quite old-fashioned at heart, but circumstances and reality have rendered that impossible. Quote:
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Melon ------------------ "He had lived through an age when men and women with energy and ruthlessness but without much ability or persistence excelled. And even though most of them had gone under, their ignorance had confused Roy, making him wonder whether the things he had striven to learn, and thought of as 'culture,' were irrelevant. Everything was supposed to be the same: commercials, Beethoven's late quartets, pop records, shopfronts, Freud, multi-coloured hair. Greatness, comparison, value, depth: gone, gone, gone. Anything could give some pleasure; he saw that. But not everything provided the sustenance of a deeper understanding." - Hanif Kureishi, Love in a Blue Time |
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#40 |
Refugee
Join Date: Jun 2001
Location: London, UK
Posts: 1,538
Local Time: 04:17 PM
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"And I think it would be interesting if you ever did argue with my priest. He probably would never expect it. " Hehe, I have a long history involving me irritating priests to the point where they reccomend my family to have my first holy communion somewhere else. Spending the first years of my life in a Nun's school and then a formal Catholic School didn't do wonders for my faith. Oh, I do believe in God, I just don't believe in all the paperwork surrounding him. ie - religion. Melon, what do you believe in? Ant. |
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