Coss

Barry was a good one

Further to Kong's post above - I am an Atheist - and yet I identify as a Buddhist. For why? The best I can do is that: I see MLG, her family and friends, indeed, seemingly the entire Lao population, adhering to the religious aspects of Buddhism with obsessive zeal. Not to mention Thailand. This is of course, behaviour, that is not the same, as understanding and pursuing the philosophy (as distinct from the religious carnival), of Buddhism. Whilst I think I understand the philosophy, of Buddhism and I am happy to attempt to conduct my self accordingly, it is the understanding I have, for how absolutely sincere, MLG and everyone around her is, in their adherence to the religious aspects of Buddhism, that make me a Buddhist. I understand, approve, have respect for and encourage, those who I hold dear, in their religious beliefs of Buddhism. I myself don't believe in the religious carnival, but I have respect for those that do, as it's a good way to conduct oneself. Explicitly - I believe that they believe - and that is the thing. _____ Somewhat belatedly. As most on this board, have triple digit I.Q.s, there comes point in intellect, where any religion, is effectively a crowd control system and depending on the goals and gains, should be encouraged or dissuaded.

You are most kind, wait until I publish my Novel, 10 years in the brain, at this point

Thank you, Kris Kristofferson wrote it, John Cash sang it, but I'll take credit, for naming the thread, in which I posted it

Well I woke up Sunday morning With no way to hold my head, that didn't hurt And the beer I had for breakfast wasn't bad So I had one more for dessert Then I fumbled in my closet through my clothes And found my cleanest dirty shirt Then I washed my face and combed my hair And stumbled down the stairs to meet the day I'd smoked my mind the night before With cigarettes and the songs I'd been pickin' But I lit my first and watched a small kid Playin' with a can that he was kicking Then I walked across the street And caught the Sunday smell of someone's fryin' chicken And Lord, it took me back to somethin' That I'd lost somewhere, somehow, along the way On a Sunday morning sidewalk I'm wishing, Lord, that I was stoned 'Cause there's something in a Sunday That makes a body feel alone And there's nothin' short of dyin' That's half as lonesome as the sound Of the sleepin' city sidewalk And Sunday mornin' comin' down In the park I saw a daddy With a laughin' little girl that he was swingin' And I stopped beside a Sunday school And listened to the songs they were singin' Then I headed down the street And somewhere far away a lonely bell was ringin' And it echoed through the canyon Like the disappearin' dreams of yesterday On a Sunday morning sidewalk I'm wishing, Lord, that I was stoned 'Cause there's something in a Sunday That makes a body feel alone And there's nothin' short of dyin' That's half as lonesome as the sound Of a sleepin' city sidewalk And Sunday mornin' comin' down

I think that much like practising a golf swing, at the the driving range, it takes a number of shots, for one to be perfect enough, to pass muster. The difference, is of course, you get yer golf balls back and even if one is destroyed, it doesn't cost more than, many towns.

When they get common, I'm gonna be jumping off the pavement in front of them, just to piss them off

I thought Teslas were full of Auto drive safety? https://www.facebook.com/100064420460850/videos/9928680473824439?__so__=permalink

Aggressive Ute (pick-up) driver https://www.facebook.com/watch/?v=170941985894516

more in the flinging rockets game SpaceX Starship rocket explodes shortly after liftoff https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/technology/spacex-launch-system-forced-starship-to-self-destruct-after-it-went-off-course/ar-AA1a6pMP?cvid=009570c68007450592f23064fa31e33d&ei=23#image=1

Yes it's been thunk, before! Fond memories of this place - But back in Caravaggio's day (1571~1610), they liked a bit of upskirt too... Ceiling mural - https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-65342996?at_medium=RSS&at_campaign=KARANGA

Ancillary note - I saw - not met - The big D.L. in Auckland in 2002 at a small, ~50 people, temple event. 'nuther note - Had lunch with a bloke in Laos, who was previously 'secretary' to the D.L.'s number two. He was in Laos, because he was/is researching language. In particular the language that Buddha spoke. He believes that there were/are, some remote hill tribes in the mountains, between Laos and Vietnam etc, that have some older people, that still speak this language or a related form of it. The difficulty, this bloke said, was convincing some little old ladies, who'd never strayed more than 4 or 5 Km from their village and had never seen a Caucasian, let alone one 6 foot tall and twice the size of the locals, that not only, would anyone want to know about the language, but even if they did, that there wasn't a trick somewhere in this.

But wait! there's more! Dalai Lama furore reignites Tibet 'slave' controversy An online backlash to the Dalai Lama has rejuvenated a long-running controversy over Tibetan history and boosted a Chinese government narrative. The Tibetan Buddhist leader has faced widespread criticism after a video surfaced showing him kissing a young boy and asking him to suck his tongue. The Dalai Lama has since expressed regret. The incident has sparked significant online vitriol against the spiritual leader. While much of it centres on the video, accusing him of inappropriate behaviour and child abuse, a significant portion of the criticism accuses him of complicity in "slavery", using highly disputed definitions seen in Chinese propaganda. There are also concerns that overall, the online backlash is fuelling anti-Tibet sentiment. Activists say that while many of the talking points have long existed online - propagated by pro-China accounts - they are now attracting a wider audience as the video controversy renews global attention on Tibet. In Twitter threads and TikTok videos that have attracted millions of views and retweets, social media users are discussing the living conditions and lack of rights held by ordinary Tibetans before the country was annexed by China in the 1950s. Many describe this as "slavery". They also frame the Chinese annexation as an act of liberation for Tibetans. They argue that as the Tibetans' spiritual leader the Dalai Lama was complicit, and some posts label him a "demon" and "slaveowner". But these characterisations of Tibetan society and China's annexation have long been controversial - and mirror the Chinese government's rhetoric. Beijing promotes a narrative where it freed "serfs and slaves" from a brutal theocracy, set Tibet on a path of modernisation, and vastly improved Tibetans' lives. It has also accused the Dalai Lama of spearheading a failed uprising in 1959 in order to "preserve the theocratic serf system". The Dalai Lama has said the incident began with Tibetans gathering to protect him from a possible Chinese attack. The incident ended with the Chinese taking over Tibet's government and dissolving what they say was a feudal system. In 2009, China created the annual "Tibetan Serf Emancipation Day" to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the quelling of the uprising. In recent weeks Chinese state media outlet Global Times re-amplified this narrative by putting out an infographic comparing life before and after Tibet's "peaceful liberation", in a tweet criticising the Dalai Lama. It was subsequently retweeted by at least one Chinese embassy. Though Tibet's government-in-exile has disputed the term "feudal", most scholars agree that Tibet's society saw people working on estates owned by nobles, monasteries or the state, and paid taxes to them. There has been debate on how to describe these people. The Tibetan word for them, "miser", has been translated as both "serfs" and "subjects". But most experts do not see them as "slaves" which could be bought and sold. "Tibet has never had a term for 'slave'. These people were not commodities… it was like a 'peasant and lord' relationship," said Tsering Shakya, a Tibet historian with the University of British Columbia. Historically the Dalai Lama did not directly own "serfs", but as he was seen as the sovereign of Tibetan society, "everyone in Tibet was considered his subject, much like people in the UK are subjects to the King", said Dr Shakya. Critics of China's narrative, such as Tibet's government-in-exile, say Beijing uses it to justify the annexation and its oppression of Tibetans over the years. While Tibetans' standard of living has greatly improved, Tibet remains tightly controlled by Chinese authorities who are accused of committing violence and human rights violations. Thousands of Tibetans are believed to have been killed during various periods of martial law over the years. "You don't emancipate anyone with [an] army and guns. You don't liberate anyone with forced agreement," a representative of the Tibetan government-in-exile said in 2020. Some have also argued that Tibet was already on the path of reform and did not need China's intervention. "There were people advocating modernisation before annexation, there were seeds of change," said Dr Shakya. Earlier this week Tibet's government-in-exile accused China of waging a campaign to "vilify" them and the Dalai Lama. Its head, Penpa Tsering, also claimed without evidence that "pro-Chinese sources" were making the Dalai Lama's video go viral on social media and said "the political angle of this incident cannot be ignored". A BBC Monitoring check did not find signs of inauthentic online activity, indicating that the criticism comes from genuine sources. It also found the criticism came from diverse sources. While pro-China influencers as well as Chinese diplomats and state media were responsible for some of it, right-wing commentators and social media users concerned about child abuse and slavery have also joined in. Activists say the backlash has fuelled online abuse of Tibetans, pro-Tibet groups, and the Tibetan leadership in exile. It has also obscured numerous human rights issues that activists are trying to raise, including the forced assimilation of Tibetan children. "There is a frustration that Tibet largely goes unreported but now is in the spotlight for this reason, and fear that this story will become the centrepiece of the conversation about Tibet at a critical time for the future of their country and its culture," John Jones, spokesperson for the Free Tibet organisation, told the BBC. "In that sense, this story has been a gift to anyone wishing to downplay the concerns Tibetans have been trying to raise." __________

Saddle sniffers. That's one I hadn't encountered

Cav, I'd be keen to see your views on the following news: _____ Fox News Settles Dominion Defamation Case For $787.5 Million https://www.forbes.com/sites/alisondurkee/2023/04/18/fox-news-settles-dominion-defamation-case-for-7875-million-dominion-lawyer-says/?sh=7d9d5d271509 _____ and _____ Donald J. Trump @realDonaldTrump ·1d IF FOX WOULD FINALLY ADMIT THAT THERE WAS LARGE SCALE CHEATING & IRREGULARITIES IN THE 2020 PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION, WHICH WOULD BE A GOOD THING FOR THEM, & FOR AMERICA, THE CASE AGAINST THEM, WHICH SHOULD NOT HAVE EXISTED AT ALL, WOULD BE GREATLY WEAKENED. BACK UP THOSE PATRIOTS AT FOX INSTEAD OF THROWING THEM UNDER THE BUS - & THEY ARE RIGHT! THERE IS SOOO MUCH PROOF, LIKE MASS BALLOT STUFFING CAUGHT ON GOVERNMENT CAMERAS, FBI COLLUDING WITH TWITTER & FACEBOOK, STATE LEGISLATURES NOT USED, etc. https://truthsocial.com/@realDonaldTrump/posts/110212779236165465 _____

Satire warning: Trump - "your honour, can we please delay this court case, because all the negative press, there is recently, will affect the jurors opinions..." Judge - "Mr Trump, please ask the Secret Service people to wait outside. With regard to your request for a delay in this case, it is clear that the news coverage of your situation is at a level of Fuckedy Fuck ... It is this courts view, that news coverage of your situation is about to become Fuckedy Fuck Fuck ... and this will very soon, be seen as Fuckedy Fuck Fuck Fuck Fuck ... The court sees only detrimental future coverage for you, should this matter be delayed, so No. https://www.msnbc.com/deadline-white-house/deadline-legal-blog/trump-e-jean-carroll-civil-rape-trial-date-rcna80012

When Eion sent a cherry red Tesla sportster into space, I gave him credit for a good stunt. Though if it had been me, I would have sent a 15 foot scale model, of a fully rigged Spanish galleon. How ever, I came across the below and I think this is, by far the best, from Sagan et Druyan.

They did have the net, but I wasn't monitoring the deaths of actors.

I was in Laos at the time, I dunno where I got the 2022 from

I hadn't known that David Kelly has passed - Jul 2022

You're so literal. Are you sure it's not 1,699,999 waitresses, small businesses and Rugby Players? or 1,700,001? And could not some of the waitresses, instead be strippers, or florists, or male, or they and them?

In the 70s when I was a teen, macrame bikinis where the thing, pubes and nipples popping out all over the place

Yes, but the people whom you complain about , are busy making the next cute waitress, who goes on to become a small business owner and makes a son, who becomes a rugby player great. Society is a goal, not a status ...