it begins...

[BaalChatzaf]

Nowadays, a lot of people in America still identify as Christian and a smaller number still go to church.

Today, the fastest growing, most powerful religion in America is secular leftism.

Greg

Secular Leftism is not a religion. It is an ideology.

[Brant Gaede]

Wrong. Ideology is a subcategory of religion--or vice versa.

--Brant

[Peter]

I watched the last hour of that HBO documentary on Scientology tonight. I understand why it is banned in some countries. In many ways it is a criminal and a terrorist organization. It reminded me of the North Korean's ideology.

[Selene]

In many ways it is a criminal and a terrorist organization

Are those ways significantly central to their "faith," or, superficial?

[moralist]

Nowadays, a lot of people in America still identify as Christian and a smaller number still go to church.

Today, the fastest growing, most powerful religion in America is secular leftism.

Greg

Secular Leftism is not a religion. It is an ideology.

Leftism is indeed a secular political religion, Bob...

Government universities are its medrasas where jihadis go to learn to hate America. Tenured government employees are it's priests. Catastrophic human caused global warming is it's article of faith. Dope perversion and abortion are its Holy Sacraments. And government bureaucracy is its god from whom all benefits checks flow.

Greg

[Brant Gaede]

From the ground up from a supposed human history out of what I think is human nature--way back then and up to now--we start with religion per se. Religion is basically an explanation of the unknown from ignorance. Too much brains plus too little knowledge. From religion we get ideology. This is to primarily benefit the ruling class and incorporates religion; it makes no sense to fight it. This is why Catholicism modifies itself enough to make it acceptable to conquered people. The best one example would be the birthday of Jesus Christ. The church (Church) and state tend, at least at first, to be one. The English King busted this up by replacing the Catholic Church with the Church of England which in turn, over centuries, begat more religious tolerance in England then in the American colonies then the idea of separation of church and state. So Papal power receded. (The Church of England found itself in the same boat this way as the Church of Rome. The big difference between the two is one has the Pope and the other doesn't have the Pope, just a substitute.) Out of this evolved mess comes philosophy cum political philosophy.

To restate: religion, ideology, philosophy--all with distracting complications and details. For instance, communism has no philosophy; it's all ideology, AKA a dogma. If one embraces dogma one can embrace anything, even totalitarianism and massive genocide and war for the sake of war even if a "sake" is put up to lubricate it with hoi polloi. Now, if you talk about the philosophy of communism you are an outside observer. That's because to talk about it is to examine it in a way that is not communist kosher. Objectivism is both a philosophy and a dogma, depending on the conversation and examination and advocation. It all began with Ayn Rand. If left with her it's effective dogma, even the non-dogmatic parts. Those that do that are dogmatists, even if they keep their lips zipped. I suspect--I do not know--Sydney Hook didn't write a letter for Leonard Peikoff recommending academic employment because he perceived Peikoff to be a dogmatist. (Not writing him the letter was confirmed on OL by Barbara Branden. Robert Campbell said no letter from your PhD adviser is academic employment devastation.) Another possible explanation is he didn't like Objectivism and/or Ayn Rand and wanted no implied association with either. In another context, Bennett Cerf refused to publish a Rand book of essays because of an article about "The Fascist New Frontier." Likely he didn't want to be outed from his social, cultural, intellectual and political set, Atlas Shrugged being enough, especially as that was where the money (and prestige) was for Random House. If Ayn Rand hadn't been a novelist she never would have been a philosopher we'd have ever heard about. If she hadn't been a philosopher she'd never have been a novelist.

--Brant

[moralist]

Brant writes:

If Ayn Rand hadn't been a novelist she never would have been a philosopher we'd have ever heard about. If she hadn't been a philosopher she'd never have been a novelist.

That's a real gem, Brant.

Greg

[Selene]

Yes and it reads well...

Here is more fuel for the fiery collapse Greg...

The Empire State general business conditions index nose-dived to a reading of negative 14.9, from positive 3.9 in July, marking the worst level since April 2009, the New York Fed said. The index, on a scale where any positive number indicates improving conditions, was far worse than the positive 4.5 forecast in a MarketWatch-compiled economist poll.

http://www.marketwatch.com/story/empire-state-index-tumbles-to-recession-era-levels-2015-08-17

Not good...

A...

[Selene]

[moralist]

When you see the omens, these events are just obvious consequences to obvious actions. Right now people are behaving in exactly the same way as they were before the 2008 and 2001 events.

This isn't really sneaking up on anyone...

Greg

[Brant Gaede]

When you see the omens, these events are just obvious consequences to obvious actions. Right now people are behaving in exactly the same way as they were before the 2008 and 2001 events.

This isn't really sneaking up on anyone...

Greg

If you revel in confirmation bias, you may as well.

--Brant

[moralist]

Couldn't be any other way, Brant.

Everyone is biased.

We're totally subjective beings.

Sure didn't take much looking to find the two greatest market collapses in US history both occurring on the same day.

(next one exactly 4 weeks from today... )

When I have more time later, I'll post about a long pattern of historical events involving 7th years.

Greg

[Brant Gaede]

Yes, totally subjective. That's why the rich drink hot, melted, liquid gold--it's so yummy.

--Brant

it's a prestige thing

[moralist]

Yes, totally subjective. That's why the rich drink hot, melted, liquid gold--it's so yummy.

--Brant

it's a prestige thing

Everyone's subjective opinions can only agree or disagree with objective reality... they can never be objective reality. The subjective opinion I just stated agrees with objective reality, but it is not objective reality. The subjective opinion that that liquid gold is yummy does not agree with objective reality.

Greg

[Brant Gaede]

Yes, totally subjective. That's why the rich drink hot, melted, liquid gold--it's so yummy.

--Brant

it's a prestige thing

Everyone's subjective opinions can only agree or disagree with objective reality... they can never be objective reality. The subjective opinion I just stated agrees with objective reality, but it is not objective reality. The subjective opinion that that liquid gold is yummy does not agree with objective reality.

Greg

No, no, no. Your position is we're totally subjective beings. Objective reality has objective beings as part of it.

Subjectivity is as aspect of free will--making a choice--cognition. That is why when you and your buddy run from the objective bear you need run faster than him for the bear will make the objective choice of taking down the laggard. (Goodbye, buddy--I'm in a hurray!!) Now, when I have to choose which bad guy to shoot first that's subjective choice trying to be an objective choice per perceived objective risk. The objectivity of subjectivity is in trying to be objective. So, first I shoot the guy with the gun, then I shoot the guy with the knife. If the guy with a knife doesn't have a knife I'll give him one after I shoot him upon objective/subjective/detective/defective consideration of my upcoming police interaction.

There must be some (subjective?) value in the above paragraph. Feel free to mine it and refine it. Maybe something objective will fall out. (I didn't expend all my brain ammo on this one so you'll not automatically get the last word with your next word. Note, I'm not above using tricks. Just like you. Yes! You!)

--Brant

[moralist]

Religion is basically an explanation of the unknown from ignorance.

Religion is basically an explanation of the moral from understanding.

Greg

[moralist]

Shemitah (sabbath) years fall every seventh year on the Jewish lunar based calendar. So the beginning and ending dates float around September on our solar calendar. The word Shemitah means:

to release

to remit

to let alone (as in no longer being watched over), to detach

to pull away

to loosen

to shake

to overthrow

to cast down

to discontinue

to let fall

or collapse

Here are some historical events that have occurred within Shemitah (seventh) years Sept. to Sept.:

World Trade Center:

Conceived Shemitah 1945

Building began Shemitah 1966

Finished and dedicated Shemitah 1973

Destroyed Shemitah 2001

the fall of Empires Kingdoms and Nations:

1916-1917

German empire collapses

Austro-Hungarian empire collapses

Ottoman empire collapses

Russian empire collapses

Hitler begins WWII by annexing Austria and taking over the Sudetenland in Czechoslovakia in the Shemitah of 1938.

Hitler commits suicide in the Shemitah of 1945

Jewish passports invalidated, Kristallnacht, concentration camps begin, Shemitah 1938

Jewish concentration camps liberated, Nazi state collapses, Shemitah 1945

America's rise as a dominant world super power began with the end of isolation by declaring war on Germany (Shemitah 1917)

"America emerges as the world's greatest financial power, the greatest industrial power, the greatest commercial power, the greatest political power, the greatest military power, the greatest economic power, and the greatest cultural power on Earth. "(Shemitah 1945)

Mystery of the Shemitah by Jonathan Cahn

Shemitah 1973 was a watershed year marking a turning point in America.

Abortion legalized. 11 days before, the stock market reached its peak. Before the end of that same Shemitah year, Autumn 1974, 48% of stock market value was wiped out.

the Bretton Woods system was established in Shemitah year 1945 linking the worlds currencies to the Dollar and linking the Dollar to gold. By the end of Shemitah 1973 the Bretton Woods system had totally collapsed by severing the world's currencies from the Dollar.

(more later...)

[Brant Gaede]

You're like a pig in slop.

This'll work until Sept. 15.

--Brant

then the farmer will go away

(Britain and France started WWII in 1939 by declaring war on Germany when Germany invaded Poland--or, you could say, the United States started WWII when the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor--or, you could say, Germany started WWII by invading Poland in 1939 or Japan did by attacking the United States or Germany did by declaring war on the United States--whatever you can say you cannot rationally say Germany started WWII in 1938 (no bang bangs)--you might as well say the United States started WWII by declaring war on Germany in 1917 or Aristotle did over 2300 years ago [how?--by turbo-charging your rationalizations])

[moralist]

Yes, totally subjective. That's why the rich drink hot, melted, liquid gold--it's so yummy.

--Brant

it's a prestige thing

Everyone's subjective opinions can only agree or disagree with objective reality... they can never be objective reality. The subjective opinion I just stated agrees with objective reality, but it is not objective reality. The subjective opinion that that liquid gold is yummy does not agree with objective reality.

Greg

No, no, no. Your position is we're totally subjective beings. Objective reality has objective beings as part of it.

...but we are not objective reality itself.

We are totally subject to objective reality.

Greg

[moralist]

You're like a pig in slop.

This'll work until Sept. 15.

Yup... 28 days.

There is presently a well ordered sequence of events taking place which are part of a bigger picture. They have to do with America's spiritual origins and its subsequent forfeiture of moral protection and providence on 911. Since then, it has not changed direction. This moral failure on a national scale is spinning into motion a set of circumstances which are unfolding right in front of your eyes.

If it's any consolation you're not alone in not seeing what's happening, Brant.

The the majority of people in America are in total denial just like you are. So each subsequent precisely timed calamity is larger than the one before it.

2001 and 2008 had no effect on you. Maybe the next one will convince you... but then likely not. It takes a genuine threat to life to change a chosen view.

Greg

[Brant Gaede]

We might talk about bullets. The one's that whistle--and the ones that crack. Wonder why one does one and one does the other. The Sound Barrier seems to have something to do with it. But why did they get mixed up together? There's a crack and there's a whistle. At least keep your head down.

We seem to have different ideas about risk and what's dangerous. You seem to be thinking about imaginary snakes in your sandbox of life. I'm thinking about real bullets.

--Brant

maybe it's one bullet making two sounds, first the whistle then the crack--but I'm not sure and it was so long ago and I don't remember the sequence or if there even was a sequence

[moralist]

I use subsonic ammo.

Greg

[Peter]

I hear a lot of shotgun blasts around my neck of the woods and they are loud. Generally people say it sounds like BOOM! though it is a slow moving round. When I was in Korea in 1968 and 1969 we were told to park our deuce and a half radio trucks on the horizon, on top of a hill overlooking North Korea. They would shoot at them and occasionally a spent bullet would clunk the door and then we were told to take the truck off the ridge. It never made any sense to me either. The bullets left a dent.

[Peter]

Greg wrote: I use subsonic ammo. end quote

Well you were using words as a weapon when you wrote that. Oh the stings and barbs of outrageous defeat. Pow. A right cross? Thud. A rock? A crossbow or a long bow? A spear? A water hose like in crowd control? I suppose a loud noise WOULD BE sonic, so you couldn’t use a noise generator.

[Brant Gaede]

I hear a lot of shotgun blasts around my neck of the woods and they are loud. Generally people say it sounds like BOOM! though it is a slow moving round. When I was in Korea in 1968 and 1969 we were told to park our deuce and a half radio trucks on the horizon, on top of a hill overlooking North Korea. They would shoot at them and occasionally a spent bullet would clunk the door and then we were told to take the truck off the ridge. It never made any sense to me either. The bullets left a dent.

It's a demonstration of velocity and effectiveness lost for the distance involved even though you are on target. It's hard to imagine the extent a bullet first goes up then down before long range target impact. I learned it on the machine gun range watching the tracers--every fifth round--rise up then down. You never lost sight of it all because the 300 yard away target was way lower than the gun. It's also hard to believe a .22LR round can hit something a mile away if you elevate enough, but it can.

Because of the diminished velocity it might be to your advantage to wait for the target to get closer, especially if it's a vehicle. But a sniper kill at 1000 yards is no record and a sniper shouldn't be a sniper if it's beyond him and there's little wind, especially gusty wind. (He also needs a spotter.)

--Brant

never good enough to be a sniper, but my brother was--I was told he set the course qualification record with the M-14 at Camp Pendleton in 1966; if he did it likely still stands as the Marines must have soon after switched to the M-16 which was not made for the standard NATO imagined battlefield of soldiers in foxholes firing at long range targets (about that the M-14 was actually superior to the great, great, great M-79 Garand of WWII and Korea which I trained with [M-14] at Ft. Ord in 1964 in Basic Training and again in January 1965 as a bi-poded automatic rifle [the last time in my life I ever touched the gun but not a gun ("This is my rifle; this is my gun; this one's for fighting; this one's for fun"--cadence call)]--I loved my M-14 even though I loved my gun more [of course; I'm only human])

and even love it more than I love using "(", ")", "[" and "]"--etc. (I had a hard time keeping track of them above)