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    <title>Faith &amp; values</title>
    <link>http://discussions.pulsejournal.com/list.php?78</link>
    <description><![CDATA[]]></description>
    <language>EN</language>
    <pubDate>Fri, 27 Jun 2008 18:17:52 -0400</pubDate>
    <lastBuildDate>Fri, 27 Jun 2008 18:17:52 -0400</lastBuildDate>
    <category>Faith &amp; values</category>
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    <item>
      <title>So Wrong, So Long</title>
      <link>http://discussions.pulsejournal.com/read.php?78,65287,65795#msg-65795</link>
      <author>twinertia</author>
      <description><![CDATA[Anyone bother to notice that someone or something wiped out an entire page of comment? Or that various other posts have disappeared (twenty-two [22] in all)?

I'd call this board a joke, but I can no longer laugh at it or with it.

On to better things.....]]></description>
      <category>Faith &amp; values</category>
      <guid isPermaLink="true">http://discussions.pulsejournal.com/read.php?78,65287,65795#msg-65795</guid>
      <pubDate>Fri, 27 Jun 2008 18:17:52 -0400</pubDate>
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    <item>
      <title>YMCA seeks nominations for Students of Character Awards</title>
      <link>http://discussions.pulsejournal.com/read.php?78,65645,65645#msg-65645</link>
      <author>OhSNAPfan</author>
      <description><![CDATA[YMCA Accepting Nominations for Character Awards
 
 
In Greater Cincinnati, Northern Kentucky, and Southeast Indiana, there are
many teens who are giving selflessly of themselves for the good of others.
They are those volunteering of their time, mentoring, leading, advocating,
and making a positive difference. They are exhibiting the four core
character values of the YMCA ­ caring, honesty, responsibility and respect -
and the YMCA of Greater Cincinnati is looking for them.
 
Nominations for the 2008 YMCA Character Awards are being accepted through
July 1. The YMCA will be honoring 40 outstanding teens, ages 12 to 18, from
throughout the Tri-State. These teens will be the 2008 YMCA Character Awards
recipients and will be honored at an event to be held November 6.
 
For more information, or to download a nomination form, please visit
www.myy.org  . The public can also call 513-362-YMCA.]]></description>
      <category>Faith &amp; values</category>
      <guid isPermaLink="true">http://discussions.pulsejournal.com/read.php?78,65645,65645#msg-65645</guid>
      <pubDate>Wed, 11 Jun 2008 14:21:01 -0400</pubDate>
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    <item>
      <title>Re: what's wrong?</title>
      <link>http://discussions.pulsejournal.com/read.php?78,65287,65314#msg-65314</link>
      <author>conservative</author>
      <description><![CDATA[A personal perspective is that it is not reliable, efficient and has adopted controls that do not allow one to express themselves completely. You are limited in how much time you have to submit a new thread. Some topics require much more than a fews lines. You cannot gather your thoughts offline and then paste them into your new topic or a reply to a topic. You cannot save anything to complete later which would be nice since you can't paste your work or articles by others.
This is the first time in several days that I was able to even get to the Board. Other attempts resulted in &quot;Can't find this site&quot;. Alternatives are available. A forum is just a place to discuss various items of the day. It's a URL. I have noticed a significant drop since the changes in the board were made.]]></description>
      <category>Faith &amp; values</category>
      <guid isPermaLink="true">http://discussions.pulsejournal.com/read.php?78,65287,65314#msg-65314</guid>
      <pubDate>Mon, 19 May 2008 20:38:07 -0400</pubDate>
    </item>
    <item>
      <title>what's wrong?</title>
      <link>http://discussions.pulsejournal.com/read.php?78,65287,65287#msg-65287</link>
      <author>a teacher</author>
      <description><![CDATA[with this board?]]></description>
      <category>Faith &amp; values</category>
      <guid isPermaLink="true">http://discussions.pulsejournal.com/read.php?78,65287,65287#msg-65287</guid>
      <pubDate>Sun, 18 May 2008 20:18:30 -0400</pubDate>
    </item>
    <item>
      <title>Re: Under Six (6) Hours</title>
      <link>http://discussions.pulsejournal.com/read.php?78,62658,64842#msg-64842</link>
      <author>a teacher</author>
      <description><![CDATA[That's what I'd say, too, if someone pointed out a gaping hole in MY argument so quickly.  But, nice try at diving for cover!]]></description>
      <category>Faith &amp; values</category>
      <guid isPermaLink="true">http://discussions.pulsejournal.com/read.php?78,62658,64842#msg-64842</guid>
      <pubDate>Sun, 04 May 2008 20:07:08 -0400</pubDate>
    </item>
    <item>
      <title>No Harm, No Foul</title>
      <link>http://discussions.pulsejournal.com/read.php?78,62658,64840#msg-64840</link>
      <author>twinertia</author>
      <description><![CDATA[A little Pepto, a little Ingersoll, and I'm good to go!]]></description>
      <category>Faith &amp; values</category>
      <guid isPermaLink="true">http://discussions.pulsejournal.com/read.php?78,62658,64840#msg-64840</guid>
      <pubDate>Sun, 04 May 2008 19:20:27 -0400</pubDate>
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    <item>
      <title>&quot;Mission&quot; Statement</title>
      <link>http://discussions.pulsejournal.com/read.php?78,62658,64839#msg-64839</link>
      <author>twinertia</author>
      <description><![CDATA[When I say &quot;theist&quot;, it's meant as the broadly-encompazzing term that it is. Too often, I'll say &quot;Christian&quot; or &quot;Muslim&quot;, only to be met with &quot;well, that's a fake following&quot; or &quot;REAL believers would never say/do that&quot;.

What I rail against is the heavy-handednezz and knee-jerk privilege afforded, expected, and extended to various religions. Some have better histories than others, but a Florida/California oranges comparison hardly excuses the waste.

How many Buddhist rockets are aimed at various locales? How many splinter Shinto groups lay claim to market bombings? Silly superstitions, yes, but relatively harmlezz, owing to their more-personal creeds.]]></description>
      <category>Faith &amp; values</category>
      <guid isPermaLink="true">http://discussions.pulsejournal.com/read.php?78,62658,64839#msg-64839</guid>
      <pubDate>Sun, 04 May 2008 19:16:33 -0400</pubDate>
    </item>
    <item>
      <title>Best Estimates</title>
      <link>http://discussions.pulsejournal.com/read.php?78,62658,64835#msg-64835</link>
      <author>twinertia</author>
      <description><![CDATA[The UN's HUMAN DEVELOPMENT REPORT is a pretty good yardstick, and has already been mentioned in a previous post. See if you can Google Phil Zuckerman's article &quot;Is Faith Good For Us?&quot;, which appeared awhile back in FREE INQUIRY.

Beware Wikipedia: while it might seem like a good idea to have something quickly updatable, its &quot;facts&quot; can shift like hourglazz sands, depending on who's on it when and why.]]></description>
      <category>Faith &amp; values</category>
      <guid isPermaLink="true">http://discussions.pulsejournal.com/read.php?78,62658,64835#msg-64835</guid>
      <pubDate>Sun, 04 May 2008 18:39:53 -0400</pubDate>
    </item>
    <item>
      <title>Rocky Roads</title>
      <link>http://discussions.pulsejournal.com/read.php?78,62658,64834#msg-64834</link>
      <author>twinertia</author>
      <description><![CDATA[The &quot;state&quot; religions of the Scandinavian countries are old-school niceties, holdovers to appease sentimentality. Most folks use the church like banquet halls for weddings, funerals, and the odd Christmas spectacle (makes sense: commercial facilities and loads of parking space, paid for with a sliver of tax revenues). I've heard of reports which state attendance decreases of one percent (1%) yearly in many areas.

Who said any of these places were &quot;perfect&quot;? All I've ever been saying is that there are many countries the world over that've largely shelved religious tomfoolery and have gotten on with the business of living (and they're doing it without any karmic retribution).

Very little makes an FFRF member &quot;nervous&quot;; it's amazing that the organization exists ANYWHERE, let alone Wisconsin!]]></description>
      <category>Faith &amp; values</category>
      <guid isPermaLink="true">http://discussions.pulsejournal.com/read.php?78,62658,64834#msg-64834</guid>
      <pubDate>Sun, 04 May 2008 18:29:12 -0400</pubDate>
    </item>
    <item>
      <title>Re: A Li'l More Specific</title>
      <link>http://discussions.pulsejournal.com/read.php?78,62658,64819#msg-64819</link>
      <author>ruffas</author>
      <description><![CDATA[I appologize for the painful reading experience you had with one of my previous posts.  I meant no harm by it.  If it was a matter of you losing control of your bladder and ruining a new pair of jeans, I'd offer to have you send me the bill.  However, I am afraid, on this one, you're on your own]]></description>
      <category>Faith &amp; values</category>
      <guid isPermaLink="true">http://discussions.pulsejournal.com/read.php?78,62658,64819#msg-64819</guid>
      <pubDate>Sun, 04 May 2008 17:41:26 -0400</pubDate>
    </item>
    <item>
      <title>Re: A Li'l More Specific</title>
      <link>http://discussions.pulsejournal.com/read.php?78,62658,64818#msg-64818</link>
      <author>ruffas</author>
      <description><![CDATA[However, you give Japan a pas$ on this one, regardles$ of the 85% of Japanese who observe both Buddhist and Shinto religions.  According to you, lighting a candle in a Church is &quot;superstition&quot;, but lighting incense in a Buddhist temple is &quot;free thinking.&quot;]]></description>
      <category>Faith &amp; values</category>
      <guid isPermaLink="true">http://discussions.pulsejournal.com/read.php?78,62658,64818#msg-64818</guid>
      <pubDate>Sun, 04 May 2008 17:41:00 -0400</pubDate>
    </item>
    <item>
      <title>Re: A Li'l More Specific</title>
      <link>http://discussions.pulsejournal.com/read.php?78,62658,64817#msg-64817</link>
      <author>ruffas</author>
      <description><![CDATA[Don't worry, I didn't forget about Japan.  I think this one really points to your true mission.  It is clear from this, and previous posts, that your beef is not with religion or even faith.  You try to make it look like you're going after all religions by targeting &quot;theists&quot; in your posts.]]></description>
      <category>Faith &amp; values</category>
      <guid isPermaLink="true">http://discussions.pulsejournal.com/read.php?78,62658,64817#msg-64817</guid>
      <pubDate>Sun, 04 May 2008 17:37:39 -0400</pubDate>
    </item>
    <item>
      <title>Re: A Li'l More Specific</title>
      <link>http://discussions.pulsejournal.com/read.php?78,62658,64816#msg-64816</link>
      <author>ruffas</author>
      <description><![CDATA[True, skepticism is growing in these countries.  However, I remain skeptical about these numbers, because (unless I missed it), you have yet to cite the source.  All of the information I run across report different findings: cia.gov (The World Factbook); and Wikipedia.]]></description>
      <category>Faith &amp; values</category>
      <guid isPermaLink="true">http://discussions.pulsejournal.com/read.php?78,62658,64816#msg-64816</guid>
      <pubDate>Sun, 04 May 2008 17:33:31 -0400</pubDate>
    </item>
    <item>
      <title>Re: A Li'l More Specific</title>
      <link>http://discussions.pulsejournal.com/read.php?78,62658,64815#msg-64815</link>
      <author>ruffas</author>
      <description><![CDATA[I can't imagine anyone who holds to the convictions of the Freedom From Religion Foundation comfortably strolling through Norway; a country in which the state religion is Evangelical-Lutheran, and, according to their constitution, &quot;the inhabitants professing it are bound to bring up their children in the same.&quot;  

Finland, too, would make an FFRF donor nervous because of the constitutional national Lutheran and Orthodox churches.  The Netherlands, although more secular than the previous two, continues to fund Christian schools...a big FFRF no-no.  Denmark, although ranked as the country having &quot;the third hightest proportion of atheists and agnostics in the world (Zuckerman), crosses the line with the Church of Denmark and their Royal motto: &quot;The help of God, the Love of the People, the Strength of Denmark.&quot;  Sweden, too has a state Church, the Church of Sweden-Lutheran.]]></description>
      <category>Faith &amp; values</category>
      <guid isPermaLink="true">http://discussions.pulsejournal.com/read.php?78,62658,64815#msg-64815</guid>
      <pubDate>Sun, 04 May 2008 17:32:15 -0400</pubDate>
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    <item>
      <title>The End Of The Beginning Of The End</title>
      <link>http://discussions.pulsejournal.com/read.php?78,46675,64790#msg-64790</link>
      <author>twinertia</author>
      <description><![CDATA[.....she's BAAA-ack.....

Former Cedarville hardwood heroine Brittany Smart is back from Belgium, and the News-Sun was only too thrilled to do a sit-down with her (despite already knowing anything of worth from the blog they provided her during the overseas trip). Staff writer Kermit Rowe thinks she returned an improved person, but that's debatable in light of the remainder of the piece. 

The quotes are as contradictory and confusing as ever. She says she &quot;went over there for basketball&quot;, but her first diary entry claims she ULTIMATELY (her caps emphasis) went to share Christ through basketball (vague mechanics notwithstanding). Never fear, though; it gets zanier.

&quot;The biggest thing would be, you put so much focus on friendships and relationships, that when times got tough I realized he was the only one with me; I realized I've been putting human relationships before God&quot;. *Hmph*.....what to make of that? Well, to start, how did Smart plan on sharing Christ if not through friendships and relationships? Mental telepathy? Randomized osmosis? At the very least, she's saying that, when push came to shove, her foreign azzociations were a let-down (even though her online dispatches sing the praises of those she's &quot;touched&quot;). At worst, Brittany has moved beyond the pale in preferring the company of imaginary friends while eschewing actual real-world contact.

&quot;Few relationships last a lifetime, and if they do, they change. He's never-changing&quot;. You sure 'bout that, dear? A reading of Numbers 22:20-22 might be a shocker, where Yahweh tells Balaam not to go, then changes his mind and tells him to go (and punishes him when he does!). This is the same tempermental war-god that wipes out millions in the Old Testament without batting an eye, but mellows into a stern, grandfatherly figure in the New Testament.

Our frequent flyer plans another overseas sortee, and drops hints that Point Chaud might want her back (after posting mildly-nice numbers and knowing of a handful of player terminations ahead of time, it wouldn't be surprising). That should've ended &quot;Smart Talk&quot;.....but, nnnoooooo!!!! The paper's now a part of her sweatier months until she leaves AGAIN. Now we get to watch her corrupt the minds of our area's youth before she sees how many crucifixes she can pack without setting off the airport's metal detectors. 

If there were a loving, caring deity, it would not allow this evil to continue.]]></description>
      <category>Faith &amp; values</category>
      <guid isPermaLink="true">http://discussions.pulsejournal.com/read.php?78,46675,64790#msg-64790</guid>
      <pubDate>Sun, 04 May 2008 14:43:00 -0400</pubDate>
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    <item>
      <title>Would You?</title>
      <link>http://discussions.pulsejournal.com/read.php?78,64682,64682#msg-64682</link>
      <author>conservative</author>
      <description><![CDATA[If there were a Forum site that had essentially the same Forum catagories as here, where you could cut, paste and copy. sign-in under screen names. Could edit, preview etc. before posting would you support it? Would you leave here to go there to have what was once here. 100% FREE.

Check it out. You do not have to register to read

http://vmva.aforumfree.com/]]></description>
      <category>Faith &amp; values</category>
      <guid isPermaLink="true">http://discussions.pulsejournal.com/read.php?78,64682,64682#msg-64682</guid>
      <pubDate>Sat, 03 May 2008 14:25:13 -0400</pubDate>
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    <item>
      <title>Zetz Up The Schmaltz!</title>
      <link>http://discussions.pulsejournal.com/read.php?78,62658,64536#msg-64536</link>
      <author>twinertia</author>
      <description><![CDATA[Whoooh, that was arduous to read (like a razor-blade enema)! Smelled like the kind of tripe filtered through THE UPPER ROOM or HIGHLIGHTS (it's actually cut-and-paste from an episode of IT IS WRITTEN, a sales ministry led by yet another boyishly-charismatic shepherd).

From your first sentence, your horse broke both front legs stumbling out of the chute. First, there's no such animal as &quot;utopia&quot;. Second, Russia was not built on skepticism. These points are folklorishly paranoiac memes that must be overcome, no matter how hard it seems.

Even without knowing the story's origins, it's a suspect hootenanny. Yup, the &quot;Iron Curtain&quot; rusts away, and in come the hucksters. I love how &quot;a thousand atheist scientists&quot; wanted to be lectured about a specific deity. Truth be told, most of these dudes were always believers; they'd just had the party line crammed down their throats, and had to wait for things to change. 

Pastor Finley's amazed that he didn't get any questions about science or atheism. Well, DURR-hay!! Why would any of them crave the opinion of a non-scientist? 

Some of the questions asked were howlers. &quot;How do I pray?&quot; Please.....if you're THAT mentally-challenged, turn in your lab coat. The &quot;Problem Of Evil&quot;? Twisted around with the Problem of Original Sin, I'd bet. &quot;Better marriages&quot; and &quot;forgivenezz&quot;? Neither are dependent upon theism.

When Finley makes his &quot;astonishment&quot; known, what happens? ONE GUY out of the thousand (1000) gets up and makes a heartfelt speech. Atheism made them &quot;morally barren&quot;?!? So, they were ALL cheats, killers and beagle molesters in their spare time? I doubt if that could've been kept from the KGB for so long. &quot;No hope&quot; and &quot;no future&quot;? Life is what you choose to make of it; ignorance is the downhill coast, and reality is the uphill, wind-in-your-face gravel sluice.]]></description>
      <category>Faith &amp; values</category>
      <guid isPermaLink="true">http://discussions.pulsejournal.com/read.php?78,62658,64536#msg-64536</guid>
      <pubDate>Fri, 02 May 2008 16:10:04 -0400</pubDate>
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    <item>
      <title>Under Six (6) Hours</title>
      <link>http://discussions.pulsejournal.com/read.php?78,62658,64470#msg-64470</link>
      <author>twinertia</author>
      <description><![CDATA[KNEW it wouldn't take long before somebody dredged up the corpse of the former Soviet Union for some stereotypically knee-jerk fun. Not a record, mind you, but very much expected.

The USSR was a totalitarian regime, and suffered with everything we've historically seen from these rats' nests: censorship, corruption, depression, and flat-to-faltering economies. An ideal of atheism was strapped onto the backs of these poor buggers by the state (ALWAYS a warning sign that things won't go well down the road); there was nothing of natural derivation about it. And when you lack choices.....look out.

Theists desperately need to extinguish the Cold War hiccup/belch combo of &quot;communist&quot; and &quot;godless&quot; in those same breathless mentions; neither have much of anything to do with the other. Nontheism is a simpler outlook for living one's life; communism is a crappy form of government. Like trying to compare Shakespeare and squirrels.

Of course I'm focusing on the outward; I'm not about to pour a foundation of metaphysical meanderings in which to build upon. Yeah, the worldviews ARE chasmal, but it doesn't have to be a &quot;winner-takes-all&quot; scenario.]]></description>
      <category>Faith &amp; values</category>
      <guid isPermaLink="true">http://discussions.pulsejournal.com/read.php?78,62658,64470#msg-64470</guid>
      <pubDate>Fri, 02 May 2008 14:47:14 -0400</pubDate>
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    <item>
      <title>A Li'l More Specific</title>
      <link>http://discussions.pulsejournal.com/read.php?78,62658,64469#msg-64469</link>
      <author>twinertia</author>
      <description><![CDATA[Four (4) of the five (5) countries you've mentioned have decent (and growing) levels of what has been called &quot;grazz-roots&quot; skepticism within their populations.

Canada is at 25%, Germany is bulging at 45%, France remains steady at 49%, and the UK presses on at 35%. Stroll through places like Norway, Finland, the Netherlands, Sweden, Japan, and Denmark (places where nonbelief hits highs of 85%, on occasion), and you'll see societies that're doing just fine without superstition.

The United States remains a painful anomaly, but even its tawdry history is beginning to change.]]></description>
      <category>Faith &amp; values</category>
      <guid isPermaLink="true">http://discussions.pulsejournal.com/read.php?78,62658,64469#msg-64469</guid>
      <pubDate>Fri, 02 May 2008 14:07:38 -0400</pubDate>
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    <item>
      <title>Re: Real Data?</title>
      <link>http://discussions.pulsejournal.com/read.php?78,62658,64311#msg-64311</link>
      <author>ruffas</author>
      <description><![CDATA[I read of a story that sums up the legacy of the utopia built on skepticism.  It is the story of a Pastor who was invited to speak in the Russian city of Pushna, a city outside of Moscow.  

He explains, &quot;This is a fascinating place, for years off-limits to foreigners.  At the height of the Cold War, under Nikita Khrushchev, the city became a center for biological scientists.  Thousands of brilliant men and women in their white lab coats settled there and worked for the Soviet state.  Now, in the early 1990s, I was very eager to dialogue with these visionary citizens.  The lecture hall was filled with at least a thousand of them, and as agreed, they had selected the three topics for discussion: 1. Does God Exist? 2. Is the Bible True? 2. Who is Jesus Christ? 

Night by night, I would speak for about 45 minutes, and then respond to various questions they had written out for me to consider.  I wasn't concerned about the lectures, but anticipating the questions had me a bit concerned.  After all, I was going to be facing some of the top brains in the world.  And while you can plan a lecture, you can't plan those questions!  

To my amazement, after three nights of intense meetings, I hadn't faced a single question on science.  Not one.  Not one question on atheism, either.  Instead, these searching people asked questions like: How do I pray?  If God is so good, then why is the world so bad?  How can you have a better marriage?  How do you forgive people who have hurt you?  

By the end of the three-evening symposium, I felt like I really knew this audience quite well.  I had been speaking to them, answering their questions, meeting with little groups of scientists.  So finally I said to them:'You folks have really surprised me.  I'm standing in the midst of some of the brightest minds in the world and you don't ask me one question about science.  Not one question about atheism.  Why?'

One scientist rose to his feet to give me an answer.  I'd never in my life heard something like what he said.  'Pastor Finley,' he confessed, 'for forty years, we tried atheism, and it failed.  We all know that it failed.  We saw firsthand how it left all of us morally barren; we were left with no hope, no future.  So the question to us is not whether atheism is the answer to the question of life.  We know all too well it is not.  No, our question is rather whether Christianity is.  See, you don't have to answer all the questions about atheism; we just want to know that Christianity is the most viable option.'&quot;]]></description>
      <category>Faith &amp; values</category>
      <guid isPermaLink="true">http://discussions.pulsejournal.com/read.php?78,62658,64311#msg-64311</guid>
      <pubDate>Thu, 01 May 2008 22:59:51 -0400</pubDate>
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    <item>
      <title>Re: Real Data?</title>
      <link>http://discussions.pulsejournal.com/read.php?78,62658,64301#msg-64301</link>
      <author>a teacher</author>
      <description><![CDATA[Maybe the big T was referring to the former USSR?  I hear it was a real utopia...communistic, godless and no social problems (he says with a smirk).  This former country had it great.  I wonder what happened? 

This person's response, too, focused on the outward.  And, as I stated, our worldviews are so vastly different I wouldn't expect an understanding on this person's part.  Not to be arrogant, but simply a point of view thing.]]></description>
      <category>Faith &amp; values</category>
      <guid isPermaLink="true">http://discussions.pulsejournal.com/read.php?78,62658,64301#msg-64301</guid>
      <pubDate>Thu, 01 May 2008 20:26:24 -0400</pubDate>
    </item>
    <item>
      <title>Re: Real Data?</title>
      <link>http://discussions.pulsejournal.com/read.php?78,62658,64299#msg-64299</link>
      <author>ruffas</author>
      <description><![CDATA[What are the countries with lower rates of theism and/or &quot;robust levels of skepticism&quot; that are so much better?  You speak in such general terms, it's difficult to develop an argument.  Lumping all &quot;theists&quot; together makes it conventient for you to make a statement like this.     

Twinertia wrote:
In virtually every category (from adult literacy, per-capita income, life expectancy, matriculation, infant mortality, poverty, homicide, gender equality, spread of infectious disease, etc.), nations with robust levels of skepticism are cleaner, better-educated, more humane, safer, and healthier than countries with higher rates of theism.   

The top five countries with new citizenships are: #1 United States; #2 Canada; #3 Germany; #4 France; #5 United Kingdom.  You would think with all that the  &quot;nations with robust levels of skepticism&quot; have to offer, more people would want to become citizens of those countries.  Source: NationMaster.com]]></description>
      <category>Faith &amp; values</category>
      <guid isPermaLink="true">http://discussions.pulsejournal.com/read.php?78,62658,64299#msg-64299</guid>
      <pubDate>Thu, 01 May 2008 19:19:56 -0400</pubDate>
    </item>
    <item>
      <title>Real Data?</title>
      <link>http://discussions.pulsejournal.com/read.php?78,62658,64254#msg-64254</link>
      <author>twinertia</author>
      <description><![CDATA[The numbers have been rolling in, and the social sciences favor a nontheistic approach to living one's life. 

In virtually every category (from adult literacy, per-capita income, life expectancy, matriculation, infant mortality, poverty, homicide, gender equality, spread of infectious disease, etc.), nations with robust levels of skepticism are cleaner, better-educated, more humane, safer, and healthier than countries with higher rates of theism. All recorded by the 2004 CIA World Factbook, the World Health Organization, Fajnzylber's study in 2002's Journal Of Law And Economics, and the United Nations' 2004 Human Development Report.

A real kick to the head for whiny theists who swear up and down that turning from deity leads to unseemly decay.]]></description>
      <category>Faith &amp; values</category>
      <guid isPermaLink="true">http://discussions.pulsejournal.com/read.php?78,62658,64254#msg-64254</guid>
      <pubDate>Thu, 01 May 2008 15:04:22 -0400</pubDate>
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    <item>
      <title>Re: Quite A Bit, Actually</title>
      <link>http://discussions.pulsejournal.com/read.php?78,62658,64128#msg-64128</link>
      <author>a teacher</author>
      <description><![CDATA[As we are speaking from vastly different world views, I'll choose yours to make my reply.  Given an incredible lack of real data to support your comments, 

Thanks for the opinion.]]></description>
      <category>Faith &amp; values</category>
      <guid isPermaLink="true">http://discussions.pulsejournal.com/read.php?78,62658,64128#msg-64128</guid>
      <pubDate>Wed, 30 Apr 2008 20:45:46 -0400</pubDate>
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    <item>
      <title>Re: Oh I agree</title>
      <link>http://discussions.pulsejournal.com/read.php?78,62658,64127#msg-64127</link>
      <author>a teacher</author>
      <description><![CDATA[Given the parameters of your dialogue yesterday, it's not a stretch to come to the conclusion that the named infamous individuals were not acting within the will of the Lord.  As far as our everyday lives, a combination of scripture, our spiritual peace and confirmation from our brothers/sisters in the Lord make for fair measures of the will of our Lord.  I've learned time and again simply to heed the advice of wife.  She's a great barometer for what is and isn't within His will.]]></description>
      <category>Faith &amp; values</category>
      <guid isPermaLink="true">http://discussions.pulsejournal.com/read.php?78,62658,64127#msg-64127</guid>
      <pubDate>Wed, 30 Apr 2008 20:44:03 -0400</pubDate>
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    <item>
      <title>Quite A Bit, Actually</title>
      <link>http://discussions.pulsejournal.com/read.php?78,62658,64050#msg-64050</link>
      <author>twinertia</author>
      <description><![CDATA[Granted, ACTING in the name of &quot;deity&quot; doesn't NECEZZARILY make said act the will of &quot;deity&quot;, but, as yet, it's impossible to rule out (as &quot;deity&quot; has never clearly delineated its &quot;will&quot; to anyone beyond a reasonable doubt; and why &quot;deity&quot; would have to have anything done by underlings remains laughably puzzling). It would therefore behoove theists of all stripes to stop making such claims (as the benign actions have all the accuracy of placebos, and the more-destructive actions tend to be viewed as outrageous by skeptics and disavowed by the faithful in hindsight).

If any code of conduct is based upon &quot;the norms of society&quot;, then one's actions would be more likely than not to fall within the given norms; if a society's actions were so disjointed and haphazard, it'd have a hard time defining &quot;normative&quot;.

Speaking for myself (and maybe a handful of other nontheists), I place a fairly high value on rationality and everything that concept brings to the table. If I proceed with caution, I've a fair degree of certainty that my actions will prove to be very beneficial, and could greatly influence most any modern society. Will this work at all times? Probably not, because societies have always been studies in change. But I'll be willing to bet that it'll work more smoothly within a steadily-secular framework than anywhere else.]]></description>
      <category>Faith &amp; values</category>
      <guid isPermaLink="true">http://discussions.pulsejournal.com/read.php?78,62658,64050#msg-64050</guid>
      <pubDate>Wed, 30 Apr 2008 15:57:07 -0400</pubDate>
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    <item>
      <title>Oh I agree</title>
      <link>http://discussions.pulsejournal.com/read.php?78,62658,64046#msg-64046</link>
      <author>Sawber </author>
      <description><![CDATA[But who are you or I do judge whether a person REALLY believes or is just using it as an excuse.  To be fair in a discussion, you have to as$ume most folks who claim to be doing things in the name of the Lord really do beleive that.

And which of us is to judge the will of the Lord?  I can guarantee you that you and I would disagree on what the will of the Lord is in different situations.]]></description>
      <category>Faith &amp; values</category>
      <guid isPermaLink="true">http://discussions.pulsejournal.com/read.php?78,62658,64046#msg-64046</guid>
      <pubDate>Wed, 30 Apr 2008 15:11:39 -0400</pubDate>
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    <item>
      <title>Re: Close Calls</title>
      <link>http://discussions.pulsejournal.com/read.php?78,62658,63937#msg-63937</link>
      <author>a teacher</author>
      <description><![CDATA[I thinks you're both way off base in this thread!!

ACTING in the name of the Lord does NOT make the act the WILL of the Lord.

Keeping some relativistic, humanistic code of behavior based on the norms of society while claiming to be an atheist does not mean that one's actions actually fall within the given norms.

Did I miss anything?]]></description>
      <category>Faith &amp; values</category>
      <guid isPermaLink="true">http://discussions.pulsejournal.com/read.php?78,62658,63937#msg-63937</guid>
      <pubDate>Tue, 29 Apr 2008 19:52:11 -0400</pubDate>
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    <item>
      <title>Close Calls</title>
      <link>http://discussions.pulsejournal.com/read.php?78,62658,63915#msg-63915</link>
      <author>twinertia</author>
      <description><![CDATA[So, around the early-to-mid 1800s, eh? 

I'll give you Pol Pot's roughly two (2) million slain, but I'm taking Hitler's estimated six (6) million killed (he was a Catholic in good stead with the kirk who continued the scapegoating that Martin Luther started). Stalin's a wash (hard to claim a chameleon who helped do in both clergy AND scientists). Dihn Diem, Jasenovac, and Northern Ireland should bolster my case.

Going back to the 1500s gives me the &quot;slam dunk&quot;, if you will. All the Catholic/Protestant wars of Europe, the colonization of the Americas, and the untold numbers of Muslim skirmishes stand out in all their theistic glory.

All the while keeping in mind that neither of us can &quot;prove&quot; that a particular ideology is responsible for the historic barbarity towards one another (although my case is a little stronger; Pot never claimed that atheism is what drove him to murder, but Hitler was &quot;sure&quot; that &quot;Gott Mit Uns&quot;).]]></description>
      <category>Faith &amp; values</category>
      <guid isPermaLink="true">http://discussions.pulsejournal.com/read.php?78,62658,63915#msg-63915</guid>
      <pubDate>Tue, 29 Apr 2008 16:18:08 -0400</pubDate>
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    <item>
      <title>Let's talk the &quot;modern&quot; world</title>
      <link>http://discussions.pulsejournal.com/read.php?78,62658,63894#msg-63894</link>
      <author>Sawber?</author>
      <description><![CDATA[i.e., since the Industrial revolution began.

If you want to go back to the mid-1500's, I'll probably still be right, but there was a lot of non-church activity done in the name of the church, even though it was counter to the theology.

Before that, much simply needs to be attributed to the evil inherent in our nature rather than religion.]]></description>
      <category>Faith &amp; values</category>
      <guid isPermaLink="true">http://discussions.pulsejournal.com/read.php?78,62658,63894#msg-63894</guid>
      <pubDate>Tue, 29 Apr 2008 15:24:12 -0400</pubDate>
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