tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8580258.post168425876386439185..comments2024-03-29T06:03:45.545-07:00Comments on One Cʘsmos: World. War. Three.Gagdad Bobhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14249005793605006679noreply@blogger.comBlogger30125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8580258.post-9350837846436193962010-08-01T15:54:47.756-07:002010-08-01T15:54:47.756-07:00Ghandi wasn't a Christian. He was a traitor.Ghandi wasn't a Christian. He was a traitor.Diannehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16301129417706219603noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8580258.post-75330277561902985082010-07-31T08:29:14.490-07:002010-07-31T08:29:14.490-07:00incidently, because military service is a calling,...incidently, because military service is a calling, at least for most who join, I would never wanna see a return of the draft. <br /><br />There are other reasons too, but that's a big one right there.<br /><br />Who wants someone who ain't called, or who is not cut out for it to watch your back?<br /><br />That don't mean prior draftees who served ain't honorable. Some of them like Sargeant York received the Medal of Honor.<br />And some found that the military really was their calling after getting their feet wet. <br /><br />The people I'm talking about are the one's like John Kerry or that despicable scumbag who worked as a "source" for The New Republic awhile back. <br />Just to be a bit more clear.<br />Hopefully.USS Ben USN (Ret)https://www.blogger.com/profile/07492369604790651538noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8580258.post-77101926208968219052010-07-31T08:16:41.618-07:002010-07-31T08:16:41.618-07:00Accept, not except. Sheesh. I really ougtta learn ...Accept, not except. Sheesh. I really ougtta learn to edit my comments. :^)USS Ben USN (Ret)https://www.blogger.com/profile/07492369604790651538noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8580258.post-47824106910443506512010-07-31T08:13:08.454-07:002010-07-31T08:13:08.454-07:00"What could be more spiritual than killing ev..."What could be more spiritual than killing evildoers and breaking their stuff?"<br /><br />Aye! Which makes those who wanna empathise and "understand" evildoers for the purpose of "rehabilitating" them even more obscene.<br /><br />A good movie example of an evildoer (besides the obvious terrorists, nazi's, commies, etc. in several other flicks) would be Independence Day.<br />The President asked the alien "what do you want?" hoping to negotiate presumably. <br /><br />The alien said, "for you to die" (or something to that effect).<br /><br />That's certainly the attitude of the Isamofascists, although they will also except those who earnestly convert to their demonic religion of pieces and support their diabolical plans.<br /><br />"The distaste for military combat is simply a mirror of the prior wimpified rejection of spiritual combat."<br /><br />I never seen it put that way before but it rings true. Afterall, how could one accept spiritual combat and choose to fight that war and still reject those who protect our lives n' liberties?<br /><br />It truly is a calling. One only has to go speak to wounded veterans who strive to return to the battlefield against enormus odds to see that.<br /><br />Or the vast majority of retirees who would be more than happy to help should they be called upon to do so.<br /><br />I think this is why Ghandi (and pacifists in general) are so irritating. <br />Actually, they wouldn't be that irritating if there weren't so many sheeple that view them as heroes.<br /><br />Heroes of what? Cowardice? <br />Condenmscending dolts filled to overflowing with smugness? <br /><br />And ain't it kinda weird that many who view Ghandi as a hero (and pacifism as a moral mountaintop) also view Che as one? How's that work?<br /><br />Outstanding post, Bob! Thanks!USS Ben USN (Ret)https://www.blogger.com/profile/07492369604790651538noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8580258.post-71179061003189820282010-07-31T01:38:54.080-07:002010-07-31T01:38:54.080-07:00GB wrote: "You don't really discover who ...GB wrote: "You don't really discover who you are or "what you're made of" until you're up against it."<br /><br />No spiritual wussifist <a href="http://abcnews.go.com/US/faith-stops-florida-robbery/story?id=11288067" rel="nofollow">here.</a><br /><br />(I chuckled at "Pastor Bob.")Mizz Ehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02325435271880036807noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8580258.post-77977666256746870492010-07-30T18:12:56.976-07:002010-07-30T18:12:56.976-07:00Oh, sorry, JP. You must have hit a sore spot. :)
...Oh, sorry, JP. You must have hit a sore spot. :)<br /><br />My case is little more difficult than just threatening a credit rating (actually my son's), and I don't expect anyone here to take up my cause - I was just sayin' <br /><br />I'll get it straightened<br />out sooner or later.Diannehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16301129417706219603noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8580258.post-1977461565208273012010-07-30T17:43:13.324-07:002010-07-30T17:43:13.324-07:00Dianne,
No, I was referring to my work, not your ...Dianne,<br /><br />No, I was referring to my work, not your work.<br /><br />I currently reside in the world of disability law. At least half of my cases are psychiatric/psychological cases. Lots of abuse early in life, which ultimately leads to significant problems later in life. Most of the rest seem to be people who have diabetes.<br /><br />Bob is the one does psychological comp work, I think. He's met many people who have had underlying psychological fragility (e.g. early childhood abuse) impacted by the world of work.<br /><br />I have an easy solution for people who I think can work. I say "Dude. You can work. Go away." Using nice words, of course.<br /><br />I did intellectual property for years, and still might do it in the future.<br /><br />I've never dealt with a company who threatens a credit rating, however.JPhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11126071014909954387noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8580258.post-15228115819701419062010-07-30T17:26:21.570-07:002010-07-30T17:26:21.570-07:00JP,
Oh, it's not worker's comp. I used t...JP,<br /><br />Oh, it's not worker's comp. I used to be a worker's comp legal assistant, for about 5 years. Not interested in going back to that.<br /><br />I've always had to work for my sustenance, never cared to be dependent on someone or something else, or leaching off other people's hard work. Unless you really need it, I find relying on welfare or govt. funds completely repugnant.<br /><br />But businesses that extort their unsatisfied customers with the threat of a bad credit rating ...Diannehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16301129417706219603noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8580258.post-44079713173765369282010-07-30T17:12:06.090-07:002010-07-30T17:12:06.090-07:00I will always sue for food.
Or entertainment valu...I will always sue for food.<br /><br />Or entertainment value.<br /><br />I generally engage myself with harassment of the federal bureauracy. Did I even spell that right.<br /><br />And in any event, I agree with Bob.<br /><br />The most damaged workers' comp claimants were generally already initially psychologically wounded in the first place. <br /><br />Abuse? Check. Pre-existing personality disorder? Check.JPhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11126071014909954387noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8580258.post-34839751403205746452010-07-30T15:43:47.948-07:002010-07-30T15:43:47.948-07:00JP - I would like to retain you as my attorney. :)...JP - I would like to retain you as my attorney. :)Diannehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16301129417706219603noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8580258.post-54678453520699229952010-07-30T14:51:32.197-07:002010-07-30T14:51:32.197-07:00So, Tigtog, what was your magestic smackdown?So, Tigtog, what was your magestic smackdown?JPhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11126071014909954387noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8580258.post-10464417971373420472010-07-30T14:50:54.202-07:002010-07-30T14:50:54.202-07:00I admit that there is some entertainment factor in...I admit that there is some entertainment factor in law when you write letters to insurance companies along these lines:<br /><br />"Dear Insurance Company:<br /><br />You have a policy that has lanugage in it. This language means what it says it means. It does not mean 'we will not pay out on a policy based on the fact that we don't like paying out on our policies. I am enclosing a copy of the lawsuit I filed against you earlier today. Have a nice day."<br /><br />I also like writing letters to trademark infringers along these lines:<br /><br />"Dear businessperson:<br /><br />I see that you have adopted my client's federally registered trademark. While this is understandable on a certain level, since it has economic value and you are competing directly with my client, it also means that I will sue you in 48 hours if you do not immediately take all reference to the trademark off of your website. Have a nice day."<br /><br />However, simply enjoying writing legal letters and filing riteous lawsuits is not a calling.JPhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11126071014909954387noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8580258.post-50001588868415403622010-07-30T14:44:52.441-07:002010-07-30T14:44:52.441-07:00To Magnus re:
"I understand that some people...To Magnus re:<br /><br />"I understand that some people have 1 majestic smackdown that suddenly changes their life. But I suspect they still have to stay in the fire for a while afterwards."<br /><br />It is really disorienting to receive your majestic smackdown later rather than sooner in life. I truly wished mine had come earlier.<br /><br />So far, it takes years to understand the impact. Or I am just a slow learner. The difficulty is accepting its meaning versus diagnosing the meaning. The two are not the same.Tigtoghttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03290914498892961024noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8580258.post-85608014058387012402010-07-30T13:26:22.336-07:002010-07-30T13:26:22.336-07:00Really? That's messed up.
And in all seriousn...Really? That's messed up.<br /><br />And in all seriousness, thank you for serving.juliehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15975754287030568726noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8580258.post-76701693277297660502010-07-30T13:18:52.087-07:002010-07-30T13:18:52.087-07:00"One thing the left doesn't understand ab..."One thing the left doesn't understand about military life is that it is a spiritual calling, like the priesthood. What could be more spiritual than killing evildoers and breaking their stuff?"<br /><br />When someone finds out how long I was in the service they frequently say "Thank you for your service". My response is always "It is an honor to be allowed to serve". I believe that to be true at least for me, but they frequently look at me like I just did something nasty to their sister.Jimhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16202441664961886198noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8580258.post-14031232630440562422010-07-30T11:43:41.920-07:002010-07-30T11:43:41.920-07:00The smackdown. Yeah. I thought that was tough but ...The smackdown. Yeah. I thought that was tough but it's nothing compared to the bloody getting back up over and over again. For me, my calling has been a long process of elimination of self-sabotage. Like Jonah, it took a term in the 'belly of the whale' to strip away enough comfort to see it clearly. And the more in view it becomes, the more it scares me shitless. <br /><br />Which I suspect is a pretty fair indicator that I'm finally getting aligned to true north.robinstarfishhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15665546554663005609noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8580258.post-56723339744792903412010-07-30T11:42:45.110-07:002010-07-30T11:42:45.110-07:00I didn't know what my calling was until I was ...I didn't know what my calling was until I was in my early 40's, altho in retrospect, once it hit me, I could see that I had been "training" for it since early childhood.<br /><br />Now the thing is to get past all the fear of failure and do something with it, plus butt glue. Not to mention all the years of flailing around in circles on crap depleting my energy reserves, raising a child by myself and the 9 to 5 daily work grind.<br /><br />Now that my child is out of the nest and doing well, I've recently decided to see if I can get away with working part-time and living on less, so that I can work on my own interests, instead of giving all my time and energy to someone else's interests. Altho that decision is tinged with a little fear also, because I have not always made the best decisions and wonder if this is just another flaky one. I'll probably find out.Diannehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16301129417706219603noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8580258.post-76532139073206624112010-07-30T11:05:24.399-07:002010-07-30T11:05:24.399-07:00Oh, I'm certain some of my problems stem from ...Oh, I'm certain some of my problems stem from a completely improper way of being human earlier in my life.<br /><br />I didn't even realize that emotions ever really had any actual importance. I assumed that they needed to be completely disregarded or stuffed down since they interfered with forward progress. It only recently occurred to me that emotions contained any useful information at all. It would have been nice if there was a class on "emotions and what they might be telling you."<br /><br />College and career were basically economic calculations for me.<br /><br />How much money will I make in this job when I graduate? What are my lifetime earnings expectations?<br /><br />So, I upgraded from chemical enginering to law, in part, to increase my future net worth.<br /><br />It was a kind of a holdover from my early days, where the point was to win the game. <br /><br />In early life, winning = all A's. However, once you've "won" the game is over, so you need a new game to win.<br /><br />In adulthood, they don't have grades, so winning = highest salary/highest lifetime earnings.<br /><br />Although, I suppose having a general grasp of economics, investemnt, and the stock market was a nice side-effect of this to have.JPhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11126071014909954387noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8580258.post-19175992728978723682010-07-30T10:39:03.012-07:002010-07-30T10:39:03.012-07:00Again, a very relevant post here.Again, a very relevant post <a href="http://fatherstephen.wordpress.com/2010/07/29/the-daily-battle/" rel="nofollow">here</a>.juliehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15975754287030568726noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8580258.post-21104696566673777612010-07-30T10:02:25.152-07:002010-07-30T10:02:25.152-07:00I can relate to spiritual warfare. I think I'...I can relate to spiritual warfare. I think I've been fighting my own version of WWIII for the last two years. I feel better knowing this is a feature and not a bug. It reminds me of something I read awhile back from C.S. Lewis. He was asked by an interviewer if Christianity will make people happy. His reply was absolutely not. Hedonists are the happiest people in the world, until the day they die.Jameshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03149296283560293988noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8580258.post-27541464085289691472010-07-30T09:57:19.898-07:002010-07-30T09:57:19.898-07:00JP - prayer and really listening were helpful to m...JP - prayer and really listening were helpful to me in that regard. Bear in mind that there are different kinds of callings, too. For instance, one may be a monastic in general but even within that monastic life there are more specific callings - music or medicine, language or gardening, leadership or fellowship, etc. These are things that <i>in</i>form the way one perceives and interacts with the world, regardless of what one is doing.<br /><br />As always, just my blathering opinion, but that's how it seems to me.<br /><br />Magnus - <i>"What the hell am I doing? What the HELL am I doing??"</i><br /><br />I know that feeling. Also, I liked your post yesterday.juliehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15975754287030568726noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8580258.post-1220276226970253592010-07-30T09:33:19.967-07:002010-07-30T09:33:19.967-07:00Even Paul's majestic smackdown was only the be...Even Paul's majestic smackdown was only the beginning...Gagdad Bobhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14249005793605006679noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8580258.post-15928799121005239642010-07-30T09:32:28.675-07:002010-07-30T09:32:28.675-07:00Majestic Smackdown. Love it.Majestic Smackdown. Love it.Gagdad Bobhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14249005793605006679noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8580258.post-1564837948647047882010-07-30T09:27:03.516-07:002010-07-30T09:27:03.516-07:00"Most of these combats occur during purificat..."Most of these combats occur during purification, when man is divided against himself, the old man against the new."<br /><br />Tell me about it. -_-<br /><br />Being smart and having good teachers, I had a theoretical understanding of much of this already in my early 20es. But I had no idea what it had to do with my life. It took years of steadfast navelgazing before I started to wake up more and more often and think: "What the hell am I doing? What the HELL am I doing??"<br /><br />I understand that some people have 1 majestic smackdown that suddenly changes their life. But I suspect they still have to stay in the fire for a while afterwards.Magnus Itlandhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18445902788427523461noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8580258.post-86789766648820180572010-07-30T09:12:54.737-07:002010-07-30T09:12:54.737-07:00Sorry. This brought back memories of one of my ho...Sorry. This brought back memories of one of my hobbies back in my high school days.<br /><br />I would provoke debates between people of different religions and then watch the fun.<br /><br />For instance, I would get my Mormon girlfriend to into an argument with my Penetcostal friend. It was a Book of Mormon vs. The Inerrant Bible slugfest.<br /><br />I eventually realized that was a generally bad idea on so many levels. <br /><br />I also know that starting pointless religious disputes is not my calling.<br /><br />wv: ebouthowJPhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11126071014909954387noreply@blogger.com