What's a subject where you have a point of view but can see the other side of it too?

[lovemydog]

One example for me is that I'm a left wing democratic socialist. I prefer bold candidates who are clearly anti-war, pro-diversity, pro-union, pro-universal health care. I believe in tightly reigning in big banks, closing every big-corporate tax break, investing heavily in alternative energy. In every election I vote for the most far left candidate available. I believe it's the best course of action to improve our economy and the lives of all Americans.

I understand why many say you've got to put forth a candidate who appeals to a broader range of voters. Particularly regarding the next President. I understand that progressive strides can be made in smaller chunks, like the ACA to get more people insured and lower costs, free community colleges, a student loan bill of rights, free day care for working mothers, things of that nature.

What's a subject here at DU where you have a point of view, yet can understand another's point of view as well. And why? Thoughtful comments are most welcome.

[Xipe Totec]

1. The wave nature of light. nt

[lovemydog]

8. Are you in favor or against?

[Xipe Totec]

37. Yes and no. nt

[lovemydog]

56. Reminds of the joke:

They asked a politician 'Is it true you're wishy-washy on all the major issues?' He replied 'Well, yes and no.'

Hope you enjoy a good evening Xipe Totec.

[NuclearDem]

58. Same way about the cat.

I believe it's alive but I can see how some would think it's dead.

[Binkie The Clown]

72. Which reminds me of the joke:

Schrödinger gets pulled over by a traffic cop. The cop looks in the trunk of the car and says "Hey, there's cat in here, and it's dead." Schrödinger replies "It is now!"

[NuclearDem]

82. There's also a lot of drugs in there.

[Xipe Totec]

74. I'm still ambivalent on that question. nt

[JaneyVee]

2. Fantasy: Bernie for Prez. Reality: Would gladly vote for Hillary.

[lovemydog]

11. Same here.

For me also. Fantasy: 100 Senators who take over big banks, redistribute wealth to those who actually work, free universal health care, minimum wage $25/hour adjusted with cost of living increases, maximum wealth of say $10 million or so.

Reality: Would vote for boring packaged corporate democratic candidates who barely care about the poor and working classes because at least it's better than letting republicans redistribute wealth to the rich and start more wars.

[PowerToThePeople]

3. GMOs

Both sides have valid points regarding the issue imo. I think some usage could be harmful to humans but some have done good as well.

[lovemydog]

12. I hear ya.

I don't read much about it here 'cause people seem to get really pissed off on either side and I can predict what they're going to say, lol.

[Marr]

79. +1

[Glassunion]

4. The ACA was actually a really big friggen chunk.

Just sayin'

[Cha]

10. OBAMA ADMINISTRATION: 16.4M HAVE GAINED HEALTH INSURANCE

"Democrats hailed it as the culmination of decades of effort to guarantee health coverage for all Americans, including people with health problems who until then could have been turned away by insurance companies"

Don Viejo http://www.democraticunderground.com/10141040781#top

[lovemydog]

14. Hi Cha! I hope I didn't imply that the ACA isn't a huge deal.

It is. You know how I feel. I respect this major accomplishment enormously. And like you I know we can do even better in the future, perhaps even by taking profits out of health care!

[Cha]

18. Yeah, Obamacare is a good start.. no, I was replying just to the poster. I think those

16 million people couldn't care less what he has to say about it being a "chunk".

Don't think they're interested in the side who constantly whines about it.. and neither am I.

[lovemydog]

26. Very good point as always

my friend. It's a huge step forward.

[Cha]

29. Just a follow up, lovemydog..

Nerdy Wonka @NerdyWonka
CBO projected #ObamaCare would reduce uninsured by 25M in 2020. It's only 2015 and 16.4M have health insurance. WOW!

This is a BFD!
7:06 AM - 16 Mar 2015 44 Retweets 23 favorites

http://theobamadiary.com/2015/03/16/obamacare-sets-another-record/

[lovemydog]

32. And as a follow-up to that,

I'd say that I always side with what President Obama always emphasizes, that you do what you can do every time. What's that phrase Cha, about don't make the perfect the enemy of the good? I don't have it exactly right. I know you'll know that famous quote.

[Cha]

40. I do know it.. and speaking of "not perfect".. Pres Obama isn't, ACA isn't.. nobody is.. but we

keep striving and trying. too many don't even try.


Americans America @americans4amer
Follow
The New York Times on how happy the GOP was after voting on taking away healthcare from millions of Americans RT
5:32 AM - 16 Mar 2015 New York, USA, United States 169 Retweets 65 favorites


The White House ✔ @WhiteHouse
Follow
FACT: The uninsured rate has dropped by 35% since October 2013 ? http://bit.ly/1Eqt2MO #ACAWorks
9:53 AM - 16 Mar 2015 228 Retweets 155 favorites

http://theobamadiary.com/2015/03/16/a-tweet-or-two-262/

[lovemydog]

13. It was a big chunk. I just would like to go a lot further.

I like big chunks and I cannot lie.

[marym625]

5. like you, I can understand both sides of the argument.

I can see both sides of most arguments. Doesn't mean I agree with both sides.

What I find interesting is people who believe that someone who disagrees with them, doesn't understand. Although, I am sure that is true sometimes, it's actually an insulting take on a disagreement.

Nice question.

[lovemydog]

16. Very interesting that you state it that way marym625.

Yes, I rarely agree with both sides of an argument. Anything to do with right wing politics, bleccchhhh, no way!

I guess in terms of my original post here, I was thinking about it in terms of what gets discussed here often, the presidential race. I don't think many people are going to change each other's minds, but I kind of stand on the fence on that once particular argument because I'd vote for Sanders or Warren any chance I get, yet would vote for pretty much any democrat over any republican in the general election for president. So I kind of wonder why all the nasty argumentsif no one's going to change many minds, lol.

Thanks for the kind reply.

[marym625]

35. I agree that no one here, most anyway,

Will change their minds.

[Glassunion]

6. Algebra... I understand its importance and use...

But to me that shit is the devil.

[lovemydog]

17. I had an algebra teacher in 9th grade

who I vocally argued with about its importance. He tolerated me. Barely.

[Glassunion]

57. It is fundamentally important.

Economics, Chemistry, Physics, etc... I get that.


But algebra...

Evil Wizardry!!!

[NM_Birder]

84. Find the area under the curve...... or "add for friction"

after those, algebra appears as a cool soft pillow to rest your head.

[Jamaal510]

7. Feminism comes to mind.

To me, it looks like many people (both men and women) oppose it because they aren't informed about it. I hear many of them say that they think feminism is about taking away men's rights and about hating men, which is 100% false. The vast majority of feminists are not like that, and there are men who consider themselves feminists. I also saw a girl on the site GirlsAskGuys, who said she favors equality for both men and women, so she's not a feminist. I responded to her comment, letting her know that is what feminism is all about--a level playing field between the 2 genders.

[lovemydog]

20. That is really true Jamaal510!

I've noticed my evolution even here at this site too. At first just reading here I felt some of the more vocal feminists were a bit irritating. But I've come around to understanding why they are that way and agreeing with almost everything they say. I think for me it had to do with a lot of my strong free speech feelings. I'm still strongly anti-censorship, and I feel it corresponds to listening to the more radical feminists here as well. So I salute them for helping educate me on a lot stuff and making me very comfortable telling everyone in real life that I am indeed a feminist!

[starroute]

9. Regulations and bureaucracy

I know we have no better tools available at the moment to limit carbon emissions, provide aid to the poor, and so forth -- but they seem both cumbersome and intrusive. I'd really like to see an alternative, but meanwhile I can understand why the Tea Party types would bitch about them.

[lovemydog]

21. I feel like for every law that gets put on the books

they should strike two or three old ones. Even companies don't mind as long as they can understand the regulations. Same goes for the tax code as far as I'm concerned. Just make capital gains taxed as regular income, imho.

[Erich Bloodaxe BSN]

81. There should be a permanent standing committee that does basically nothing but review old laws

to see which ones simply aren't being enforced, no longer make sense, could be radically improved by current technology, etc, and bring them up to the floor to see if they should be gotten rid of.

[kwassa]

15. Religion.

I am a believer, and attend church on a regular basis. I understand why many don't.

[lovemydog]

22. Haha, as someone who doesn't attend church on a regular basis

(more precisely, on any basis) I can understand why many do.

[AngryAmish]

19. That REO sucks or blows.

Ridin the storm out on that one.

[lovemydog]

24. I love REO Speedwagon.

Not to the point of buying their stuff, but if I hear them on the radio I like it.

Journey however, is another story altogether. I immediately change the station when I hear that guy's voice.

[hunter]

23. Eating meat.

No way will I force my dogs to be vegetarians or scold them whenever they kill gophers or rats.

One of my kids used to have pet rats and our dogs then saw all rats as members of their pack. But only one of those dogs remains, our old lady dog, and kid has grown up and moved away.

Two of our dogs now see rats as food, and they are willing to share with us, usually when we are least expecting them to drop a dead rat at our feet, or worse, on our bed as we are reading or napping. They are so excited to bring us food because usually it's us bringing them food.

I'm an occasional carnivore, but my wife is not. No I don't eat rats, especially not the rats our dogs catch, but I did eat a bit of lamb yesterday, which I suspect was more mutton. If you wear wool, you've no cause to complain. Those wool sheep generally end up as some kind of meat, just like egg laying chickens, or milk producing cows.

[lovemydog]

27. Rat-lover!

j/k

[Rex]

25. I don't have a problem understanding someone elses POV. I have a problem if it is wrong.

[lovemydog]

30. Let's kill them all, with the wrong points of view!

Just kidding of course. I guess I was asking more about stuff where you really can see both sides. Not obvious stuff where you're POV is pretty clearly the correct one. What about anything that's written here at DU, Rex? Like, where two sides are arguing and you can sort of understand both sides (even though you favor your point of view more)?

[Rex]

38. Me too, I like to kid around. So much better than yelling at each other.

Okay good question, I JUST wrote a reply to someone. I am trying to understand this conversation, because I can see both side of the argument.

I guess the one main point of view I can always see from most people that post here is that they to are progressives. They just view getting there in a different way than I do. Sometimes I have a hard time remembering that everyone here wants the same thing I do, I just lose site of the overall goal.

I can see why people would vote for a dead duck (D) dragged up onto a stage any day for the rest of their lives - instead of voting for a republican. I can see that. I understand it well.

I also know that not all Centrists are trying to hoard every shackle left on the planet. They don't care about that as much as working with their opponents. They like to negotiate and I like to protest. I understand that well too.

Not everyone reads the same things I do or watches the same stuff that I do on the Intertubes. I get it. It is a big place. Also, some days I am in a bad mood from stress at work and my opinion means a lot more to me than days I have it easy and am relaxed. Everyone is that way, I get it.

Like I said, really I can see a POV and really all I want to do is have a discussion. No fights, no snark, no go look it up moron, etc..

FWIW, I really like the OP, great topic to discuss.

[lovemydog]

46. I noticed that about you too.

You can probably tell I'm like that as well. I totally believe in protesting & trying to get a progressive agenda going. I've done a lot of that. I think that's what's best for the country right now.

One area where I can't really understand some of the more centrist posters on DU is on matters involving race. I'm always stunned at how many people here are intolerant even of looking at their own views and seeing how something they might say could be considered racially insensitive. Now, that may not make them a total racist like the kkk or something, but I think we as leftists have a long way to go in getting people toward being much less defensive about it, and toward fully honoring all people of all colors.

Also, in generally believing what police generally say, or complaining about protesters holding up traffic. Personally, while I don't disrespect police publicly (mainly 'cause I'm not that stupid) I do think they tend to lie a lot, especially in court.

But I digress. Hope you enjoy a good evening and keep on smiling & laughing!

[Rex]

54. You too have a great night.

Yeah it is sad really, most people think I hate cops and really I don't at all. Then again, I openly have no problem talking about white privilege. It's true. Just like Rape Culture or the trials and tribulations the LGBT community has to go through every single day. These are issues we should DEMAND be discussed and not ignored. NO good liberal would mock or ignore those issues imo.

I don't think it is unreasonable to ask people to seriously consider those issues and like you I am surprised at knee jerk/instant defensive replies as if they took it personally. Why? We are talking about franchise racism, sexism, police brutality etc.. I would hope nobody hear assumes I mean them personally.

Ha! I am going to start rambling now...so instead just want to say good talking with you. Great topic we need to talk about this more in GD and less divisive issues.

We can all come together or we can all fall apart together. Our choice. I do my best to remember that, yet fail too at times like everyone else.

[Paulie]

28. Being one of the first dead Martians from Earth

I see the glory in a one way trip. But it's a one way trip.

[hunter]

33. Without huge dirty nuclear powered rockets, fission or fusion...

... the trip to Mars is going to be as deadly as the Oregon Trail.

But worse than that, there's no Oregon on Mars.

[lovemydog]

60. Hopefully they can at least stream Portlandia

on Mars.

That one-way ticket thingy is a deal-breaker for me though.

[lovemydog]

34. I know there's something really funny in there Paulie.

Can you explain it to me?

[Paulie]

41. See here

http://arstechnica.com/science/2015/02/mars-one-narrows-applicant-pool-to-100-potential-dead-martians/

[lovemydog]

47. A one-way ticket?

WTF are you supposed to do if you wanna go back to earth? Hitchhike?

[Paulie]

50. YA don't come back

That's part of the deal. But to be a Martian colonist if Ya can make it would be pretty awesome. But it's a slim chance. And I can see both sides of the argument!

[lovemydog]

61. Now I understand why you can see both sides of the argument.

It took me a while to get it through my thick skull.

I say let's send a bunch of right wing billionaires there.

So long as they leave their estates to us!

[Fumesucker]

59. Life is a one way trip

[lovemydog]

63. Well, that's true.

I just don't want mine to end on Mars.

[Ruby the Liberal]

31. Kinda not what you asked, but

I am highly agitated that we have a lot of D's fighting tooth and nail against de-scheduling and (eventually) federally legalizing medical marijuana in order to remove the blockade against studies into what all the plant is capable of accomplishing. Alcohol is legal, cigarettes are deadly with NO medicinal value - yet people suffering from a plethora of issues face the only side effect of smoking cannabis: a jail sentence.

It irks me to see that there are R's fighting for this while the D's cater to the low information Refer Madness crowd. Especially in my own state.

[lovemydog]

36. Weed should be completely decriminalized.

At least that's how I feel. Is that what you're saying too? And if you're saying democrats still argue about it, that's pretty sad, imho. I skip those arguments because to me it's just obvious. No one should be in prison over weed.

[Ruby the Liberal]

39. At the end of the day, yes

But for now, going after politicians for blocking research seems the most effective. I have been a member of NORML since the late 70s but as a cancer patient as of winter 2013, I am getting more assertive about it.

Thank you for your support.

I look forward to seeing more (on topic) responses to your thread.

[Rex]

42. +1 and all the people that are Ds saying, 'oh you just want to smoke it.'

NO, I watched a dear loved one die from stage 4 pancreatic cancer so you can fuck off with that comment. The Reefer Madness, War on Drugs almost drives me into madness. Such a massive waste and such a large amount of suffering. Totally unnecessary when rehabilitation is effective and a positive reinforcement. For people that want help, not people that get punished for owning a plant. Getting punished for owning a plant is dark age policy.

We've had decades of proof that MJ is nothing really to those that like it for recreation and direly needed by cancer patients as a pain killer and muscle relaxer.

[Major Hogwash]

69. Well, this is the 3rd year in a row that a woman here, whose daughter who has seizures . . .

. . . that are so violent that they literally throw her to the floor, and cause her to black out, has asked the state's legislature to legalize cannabis oil as a medicine to help alleviate her daughter's seizures.

Her daughter has a rare disease that does not respond to any other known drug or treatment.
Yet, the only thing the Republicans in the legislature seem to be concerned with regarding legalizing cannabis oil is that maybe people who don't have those seizures may get their hands on some of that cannabis oil!!

This woman has been interviewed on tv several times over the last 3 years.
And she has described in detail the living hell her young daughter is going through.
Yet, in both of the previous years a bill to legalize medical cannabis oil for people like her daughter never even made it out of the Republican-controlled committee!!
This year they said they want to study it some more before they draft a bill for that committee.

Even though there are several studies that have been conducted that already show that cannabis oil is effective at relieving the kind of seizures her daughter has as a consequence of the very disease she suffers from.

I don't know how those Republican legislators can sleep at night.

[Blue_In_AK]

43. Unfortunately for me,

I can usually see both sides (or even more) of almost all issues. That's not to say I don't have strong opinions that I hold to, but I can usually understand the other side, even if I disagree vehemently. It's kind of a curse.

[lovemydog]

48. I don't think it's a curse.

I think it means you are empathetic & probably have a good sense of humor as well. I'd guess you're a cool person to be around.

[malokvale77]

44. I was going to answer...

and then realized (after looking at other responses) it was going to turn into a flame war.

[lovemydog]

49. A flame war? Holy shit.

I don't want a flame war!

[malokvale77]

52. Aren't you glad I didn't start one. (nt)

[lovemydog]

55. Yes! Thank you malokvale77.

[OrwellwasRight]

45. Death Penalty

I'm opposed, and have gotten more opposed over the years as I have learned more about false confessions and the institutional biases in our system. However, I see what people are saying at least when it comes to mass murderers. I don't see much point in why the rest of us have to pay to keep Charles Manson or Timothy McVeigh (or any mass murderer) alive forever when what they did was so awful and inexcusable. It's hard to argue that point except to say I don't want be a murderer too, and that's what I am when I condone the death penalty. See, I can talk my way into either side.

Also, I don't think people who say immigrants should not get welfare are totally crazy. I mean, it would seem weird to move to a foreign country and then expect that country to start providing housing, food, and healthcare for you before you had contributed anything to it, wouldn't it? I get how that sits funny with people who aren't looking at it from a human dignity perspective. And most Americans don't look at these issues from a human dignity perspective because that's not really our political discourse.

[lovemydog]

51. Interesting.

I don't discuss the death penalty here because I'm totally against it, no exceptions. It was the essay by Albert Camus, Notes from the Guillotine, that basically convinced me that the State should not have that much power. Secondly, it's immoral imho.

On the immigration question, I see where you're coming from. That's a really tough issue and I can see other views. Generally I feel that it's also kind of a non-issue for me because I think our country benefits from robust immigration. It also helps to look at other country's immigration policies. They vary a lot.

[jberryhill]

53. A lot of things

I'm usually interested in drawing out someone who has made up their mind on a subject, in order to help make up my own mind. Unfortunately on DU, if you challenge a strongly held opinion by trying to flesh out the reasoning, the usual response is hostility.

[lovemydog]

64. That is often the case with group-think.

I like challenging my notions. As long it's not overly hostile.

[daleanime]

62. It's not the subject....

Last edited Tue Mar 17, 2015, 10:03 AM - Edit history (1)

it's the person. If you can do, that shows something about you. Not what ever your discussing.


Just like I can see that this is the only argument that money can make to me and people like me in order to get us to support their candidate.

[applegrove]

65. I'm dyslexic and as such keep different narratives separate.

Last edited Sun Mar 22, 2015, 02:15 PM - Edit history (6)

That means that I totally empathize with someone. And then I totally empathize with the next person. And then I totally empathize with someone on the right and am very frightened by that. My own views are based on all those views of the world - but are the big picture. It is why dyslexic make great leaders... they see everyone for who they are and can see the creeps for the creeps they are, the religious walk the walkers for who they are, the good and bad that is found on the left and right (not much good on the right these days as they are all in a cult). And on and on and on. So in my big view of things I want all sorts of policies that will help all sorts of people be their best... even if said policies go against each other. I'm not a one track mind. Takes me hours and days and weeks and months and years to come up with the big picture of all the realities I come across. Why a dyslexic like Churchill figured out what a danger Hitler was long before anyone else in government. When cults get formed by psychopaths it is really obvious to someone who can empathize will all people's narratives and see a growing group of people with the exact same faulty lockstep narrative based on likes and tricks of the psychopath. Only the military in Britain saw Hitler as as much of a danger as Churchill did. The others in government were good eggs who projected their goodness onto Hitler and said "he wouldn't" when presented with the atrocities Hitler was building to. Fact is an average person has to change their whole world view and view of the culture they are apart of to get how the big picture has in fact changed. Pretty hard to change everything you believed in. A dyslexic is used to a changing big picture and grasps the cult sooner because they have already accepted that each person's narrative are slightly different in normal times, and that reality is something that takes them all in together, including the narrative of the people who are being persecuted, which are the opposite of all those many narratives in lockstep in the cult.

[lovemydog]

66. I never knew about that aspect of dyslexia, applegrove.

Learn something new every day!

I'm not like that regarding right wing stuff. I'm like 'stay away from me, I don't even want to listen to you any more.'

[applegrove]

67. I wean myself away from right wing information because I can't take it. But their antics make it

onto the blogs and the news so I can't help but see their sleeze and exploitation. Fortunately I am in Canada and hardly ever run into anyone on the right in person. That must be terribly jarring.

[gwheezie]

68. The death penalty

I've changed my mind more than once and have supported pro and con. I have been against the dp now for years. However I also worked on a forensic psych unit in the past and there were a handful of inmates who were dangerous to the staff and we could not IMHO house them safely putting everyone at risk. And we weren't going to fix them either. And they had already murdered without a doubt. I would think why should I risk getting killed? To keep this guy alive?

[lovemydog]

70. That must have been really difficult

risking your life around dangerous people.

Though I'm anti-death penalty, in terms of someone who is completely incarcerated, I'm not anti-war. I think World War II, for example, was necessary to stop the spread of fascism. I'm also in favor of killing terrorists, in other words, killing them before they kill us. It raises some interesting questions though, like how much civilian damage is tolerable. I certainly don't have the answers to that kind of question. I think following the international rules of the Geneva Convention, building coalitions with our allies and paying mind to groups like Amnesty International is quite important.

Thanks for raising these intriguing questions in my mind.

[Binkie The Clown]

71. Belief in a magical sky daddy who grants wishes and punishes evil doers.

Why? Simply because out of this whole vast Universe of billions and billions^® of galaxies, stars, and planets, the magical sky daddy picked out a patch of desert on one tiny planet and, according to "The Book" everything important that sky daddy ever did, was done right there on that sad little patch of real estate.

How could a story so patently absurd be taken seriously?

I can't see the other side because there is no single, rational other side. There are dozens, if not hundreds, of conflicting, equally irrational "other sides".

[lovemydog]

73. Okay Binkie.

To play devil's advocate (hehe) is there anything you might like just for fun or because it makes you feel better? Or, more to the topic of my original post, any subject where you sort of can see the other side of the argument?

[Binkie The Clown]

75. UFOs and space aliens. That would be fun to believe in.

And who knows, the tinfoil hat crowd might be right! Wouldn't that be a hoot?

[still_one]

76. I am prochoice, but I can understand the other sides point also

I just don't agree with it

[lovemydog]

87. I'm prochoice too but I don't respect the other side's view

on this issue. I think it's a personal decision between a woman and her doctor. And government and busy bodies should stay the heck away from it. I guess one could say I'm unreasonable on this issue, but I see it as standing squarely with the majority of women who say 'hands off my body.'

[still_one]

88. Not respecting the other side's view, is NOT the same thing as understanding their view. Which is

exactly what I said, "I understand their point of view, but I don't agree with it"

I definitely don't respect someone who wants to control someone's body, or even the more extreme elements of the prochoice movement, who do not believe that rape, incest, or the life of the mother should even be taken into consideration. They even go one step further, against birth control.

I think I understand their argument pretty well, it is centered on their religious beliefs, but demanding anyone who does not subscribe to those beliefs has committed a crime is garbage.

I agree with you in regard to not respecting their view, but I have no doubt you understand their view, and why they have that view

[guillaumeb]

77. faith

and guitars.

Faith first:
I am a believer in the message of Jesus Christ. I try to live by the message. Then I fail and try again. I would never try to convince someone that my beliefs are correct. But I can also see the non-belief side of the question. Many non-believers seem to require proof of the existence of a deity. In the absence of proof the non-believer cannot believe. I understand. What I feel there should be more of at DU is an acceptance by both sides that each side has a belief system. There should be no mockery of either side because mockery provokes anger and that never leads to understanding.

Guitars:
I cast my vote for the superiority of the acoustic guitar over the amplified guitar. No need to explain the "why", acoustic simply rules.

[Erich Bloodaxe BSN]

80. Abortion. And I think the only way for both sides to win is 'technology fix'.

I do understand the 'it's a living being argument', and I'm sympathetic to those who want to keep fetuses alive to become children. Just not sympathetic enough to demand that women become 'birthing chambers' for unwanted fetii. Forced birthing is just a nonstarter. I think we only get both sides 'happy' when we can develop artificial wombs to carry them to term without them being inside an actual human woman, so that anti-abortion types can adopt them when it's time to decant them out of their pods. So the woman who doesn't want a kid gets what amounts to an abortion that just doesn't kill the fetus, and the fetus that is 'aborted' gets popped into an artificial womb and adopted out to anyone who does want it, and can pay for its care.

[NM_Birder]

83. Black Holes, the truly undiscovered country.

each one devouring galaxies, creating an infinatley dense particle, of infinate mass that "BIG BANGS" out a new universise in an infinatley diverse set of planes ?

are they destroying the devoured matter to an unknown physical form, and converted to dark matter and/or pure energy ?

are they a wormhole to another location/dimension and transferring matter /energy ?

Are they the key to the multiverse, where I could theoretically meet myself in another living plane ?

the other subject that plagues me,
the perfect martini - hold the vermouth bottle next to a clean martini glass just for effect, shake Ketel One for 90 seconds in ice filled shaker till arctic frosty, filter pour, add two olives.

"dirty martinis" are not my thing, but I do enjoy a bloody mary now and then, I just don't like it in a martini glass. So i can see both sides of that debate.

[ieoeja]

85. Gun control.

I grew up on a farm. I understand the immense difficulty it would be running a farm without firearms. Not to mention that last time we called the cops during an emergency it took 20 minutes for the cops to arrive. A lot of urban/suburban people absolutely refuse to accept that reality exists.

I have lived most of my life in the city. I understand the immense problems caused by firearms in the city. I also know the city is too crowded to permit much use of it as a defensive weapon. A drunken individual wandered in through my back door one night. Had I shot at him, missed and gone through the wall, there is another home 4 feet away. The whole idea is preposterous to anyone who has experience of both firearms and the city. A lot of country people absolutely refuse to accept that reality exists.

I tend to hate both sides of the debate. Both typically call me a liar. I will be surprised if someone doesn’t call me a liar about this post.


But what I really, really, really hate is the new gun culture. I played in the woods on our farm. By myself. As a child. At night even. I now have grown family members who will not step foot into those forests without a gun because “it’s too dangerous”.

My dad would not allow a loaded firearm in the house. We loaded after we stepped foot out of the house. And we unloaded it before stepping foot back inside. Today? I see children playing with loaded firearms in the houses.

The gun nuts have created a culture that is paranoid and afraid of everything except for the one thing that they really should handle like a loaded gun which is a loaded gun.

[lovemydog]

86. Yeah I don't get involved in those debates either,

for the same reasons you mention. I understand why people in cities want strict rules on gun control, while people in more rural areas might not. Whenever there's a proposal for federal regulation it looks reasonable to me, but it rarely passes.

[NaturalHigh]

89. Abortion.