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Spankytoes

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Posts posted by Spankytoes

  1. 15 minutes ago, gsoda3 said:

    well you DO either accept those are the answers or you don't.  as for the rest of what you claim i said, you're reading comprehension's awfully suspect for a lawyer.

    The defense rests.

  2. 49 minutes ago, Patricio Swayze said:

    Nate, you are doing this right. A lot better than most in this site (or “in the real world”) do. You use words such as “faith” and “believe” because you know that there is no proof. You acknowledge that the links and writings you reference are far from air tight and not enough to corroborate anything. You should do a seminar for other Christians on how to have a discussion about religion without getting bent out of shape or claiming something is a fact when really it’s a concept of faith. Have some more rep.

    Respect. Gsoda3 goes about it the wrong way. 

    "Look, you either accept that all of the factual answers are in that book or you don't. It exists, and its old, so its legitimacy is irrefutable as the Word of God...the real one, not the one those dot or towel heads look up to."

  3. 7 minutes ago, Cheeseweasel said:

    I've always had an issue with this. This is the shit that gets people to travel to some exotic country and drink Kool-Aid when Dear Leader says "you must have faith".

    The Bible has been rewritten/translated for thousands of years. If this is THE WORLD, why would God allow confusion?

    Texas won the National Championship 12 years ago. Based on the people I've talked to, and the claims on the internet, the Rose Bowl must have held 500,000+ seats for all the people that say that they were there to witness it in person. When you tack on more time, and something like eternal damnation as the worst outcome, I imagine the stories get exaggerated a little further. Maybe even fabricated to run with a good PR line that can't be disproved. 

  4. 9 minutes ago, Uncle Nate said:

    Spankytoes-

    This is where faith comes in...because we as humans can in no way understand any of this as being logical.  Our hearts and minds fully reject it all.  The only way a person can believe it is through faith alone.

    I admit that straight up.  The Trinity?  What human being could possibly have dreamt THAT concept up?  You can't explain it...heck, it's beyond our capability to even try to understand it.  We can't.  You either believe or you don't believe.  That's what it boils down to.

    You believe by hearing (or reading) the Word.  Some people hear/read it, and reject it.  Some people hear/read it, and by a miracle of faith accept it.  Those who reject it can't understand why on Earth those who accept it believe as they do.  Why?  Because it doesn't make sense to us as humans.  It simply doesn't.  

    Understood, which is why it's a pointless debate. The Christian god is one of trillions of theories to answer the questions of "why" and "how" and one of thousands of gods that have been worshiped. As an agnostic, it's not about making sense for me. The Big Bang Theory is severely flawed. Where did the particles come from and when did infinite time and space come into existence...and who created the chain reaction for that? That's why I classify as agnostic rather than atheist, because I think that atheists are just as arrogant and misguided as Christians. The Bible, however, is so full of plot holes and double-talking that George Lucas looks like a scholar compared to it. Faith is a choice, but it's not a "free choice" in that Christianity has a major influence on you simply based on where you were born and grew up. A devout Muslim is just as convinced that he is following the righteous path all the while recognizing Jesus as a prophet.

  5. 1 hour ago, Uncle Nate said:

     

    If you sit down and read the Bible all the way through, and come back and reread the Old Testament, you will see the OT is all about Jesus from start to finish.  It's amazingly eye-opening. 

    How so?

    That books were written from 3rd person accounts 50 years after they happened, edited, added and deleted by the Catholic Church, translated into English by medieval scholars that are apparently more advanced than 2018 Google and spellcheck and served to the public in several different versions of the text, which are then interpreted to fit a denomination's belief system?

    I'm going to go with "no". 

  6. 2 minutes ago, DanRydell said:

     


    And most Americans would see raising your taxes (and probably those of most of us on this board for that matter) as a tax increase on the rich.

     

    Which is bullshit. I don’t classify myself as “rich”. I never understood the mentality of people wanting to punish others for having more pieces of paper than they do. It’s all relative. Especially the 1%, who apparently should be punished for being too successful. Gen X and under should be prepared for what’s ahead. Baby Boomers created their own problems.

  7. 53 minutes ago, CooterBrown said:

     


    Yeah but 127k isn’t equal everywhere. The people earning that are mostly living in expensive cities where that is middle class and in a few cases, working class. They are supporting the rural shitholes where 127k makes you a 0.1%er.

     

    Este. We’re Middle Class, possibly Upper, at best.

  8. 1 hour ago, DanRydell said:

     


    A single-income household with the earner making $127k per year is earning more than about 85% of American households annually.

    A married couple both maxing out of the SS tax are earning more than 97% of American households annually.

     

    And? Both my wife and I make more than that individually and I guarantee that we pay more City, State and Federal taxes than 97% of American households. Not to mention a much higher cost of living than we did in TX. 

    I for one hope SS depletes and the world burns. People have had their head in the sand for far too long about the government taking care of them in their old age while parking their leased Beamer in the 3rd garage spot of their perfectly manicured mini mansions. If you can’t get at least 60% of your annual income out of your 401K at retirement, and see SS as gravy, you suck at finances. This wasn’t some dark secret.

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  9. 1 hour ago, Longhornmaniac8 said:

    Eh, as someone who was taken to Paris as a 12 year old, I hated it. The Eiffel Tower was cool for 30 minutes, as was the Arc de Triomphe, and as a plane nerd I loved the museum at Le Bourget, but honestly there was nothing else I remotely liked about Paris. I'd hold off until 16+ for Paris when they have a little more appreciation for the history.

    I vividly remember being bored as shit touring a submarine in Galveston with my parents at 12. But I also remember going to NASA near Houston around 8 and being fascinated. I agree, 12 - 16 is a weird age. I went to St. Petersburg, Russia at 16 and appreciated the culture much more. Seeing the Hermitage was awesome. But I was preoccupied with making out with a chick in our tour group in the garden area and trying to catch glimpses of her side boob. The history of the palace was about 25% “cool” at the time. One of the places I want to revisit someday...especially if there’s side boob. 

    Back to the OP’s plan, meh, not for me. Amsterdam has pretty areas but there’s really not much to do there that’s family friendly. Your kids could not care less about the Anne Frank House or its significance. Meeting up with the exchange student is a good experience, but for you. If you’re pot smokers, and don’t mind your kids having that conversation, it’s marginally better. With regards to London, you don’t want to stay that far out. There is no “downtown” really. Most of the stuff you’ll want to do will be along the Thames and you’ll need a water taxi to do it above ground as it’s too spread out to walk with kids. There are some more budget friendly areas in Kensington and Chelsea that are only a few tube stops away. Plenty of things for the kids to do in and around London. The Oyster card has a max fare if you stick to Zone 1-2 and discounts for the kids. No matter where you stay, you’re going to use it anyway.

  10. Paris is a no-go with kids that age. It will take you 2 days to see the main sites of Paris. Unless you’re going to Disneyland, you’re pretty much done. Normandy, Versailles, the Louvre, people watching,  etc. are all interesting to adults, not kids.

    London has more than enough to spend a week on. But, it’s also the most expensive option. If they are fans, the Harry Potter Studio Tour is worth it.

    I’m not a big Munich fan, outside of Oktoberfest, but honestly, it’s a great idea. Do Munich, then get a car and drive through the Alps. Most memorable thing I did last year was following my GPS up the mountain to find out that the route was faulty. Driving through the breathtaking scenery trying to get cell service to get back on course was awesome. In addition to Salzburg and Innsbruck, Hallstatt is definitely worth a look. One of the prettiest and peaceful places on Earth. The entire Lake District is pretty cool. 

    I’d do 2 days in Munich, 2 in Salzburg and the rest exploring Bavaria (Neuchwanstein or the Romantic Road) then heading to the Austrian Alps. If I were that age, I’d be more impressed with the mountains and driving on the Autobahn than I would at trying to see the Mona Lisa behind glass.

  11. My son is in town for the week so I bit the bullet. Much better than I expected. Didn’t love it, but it’s TBS rotation worthy. Takes a while to get going and extremely predictable. I’m the opposite of most. Though Lando was great but didn’t care for Han. Good popcorn flick.

  12. 4 hours ago, oSuJeff97 said:

    Exactly.

    This all feels like an extended rant of pissed off fanboys who didn't like TLJ because it wasn't the movie that THEY would have made.

    As far as I recall everyone (for the most part) really liked TFA and Rogue One.  Now all of a sudden there's this huge Star Wars crisis because fanboys didn't like TLJ and they've decided they hate Solo before they even see it?

    For fuck's sake. STFU whiny fanboys.

    I like Star Wars but don’t love it. I’m in the camp that had no idea there were stories beyond the movies. Going to wait for Netflix on this one. Rogue One was the only enjoyable movie of the current crop. TFA was recycled crap. TLJ was certified shit. SW has become a cash cow where the enjoyability of the films is far down on the list because it prints $$$ with the franchise designation. It’s not because fanbois have written better stories of fan fiction. It’s because the storylines are truly shitty but feature familiar childhood charectars us late 30’s - 40’s guys can relate to.

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