Gun Control

[CX]

But you've said that you favor women being forced to register for the draft. That argument then goes out the window.

Not every man would be up for it either. It's one of those moments were one can just buy a helmet as they realize the life sucks. Besides, it's not like I can see a draft anytime soon, so it's just a hoop that everyone or no one should have to jump through for Federal assistance.

Not to mention, the argument here still being made is that women have no biological limitations to match the physical conditioning of men and that therefore if you tested 1000 average males and 1000 average females at a certain physical level, men would not significantly out perform women on the average.

That isn't what I'm saying. What I'm saying is that woman can overcome any limitations and perform far better than what you and othes have said. If you ask me, that's selling a lot of people short, and only serves to keep old stereotypes and gender roles alive that are just wrong.

I mean in Nature we see gender roles in a given species all the time. In lions, the women actually do the hunting while the men just lay around and relax. What I'm driving at here is that every species has roles for the sexes and Nature has built them biologically with those roles in mind, in no species on the planet that produce sexually the way we do, do we see symmetry of physical prowess or, I'm doubting, any other trait for that matter. Humans are no different in that respect than animals: we were built by nature, and men and women were built by nature for different things.

Which has actually been part of the arguement to keep women limited to caretaker roles if they're even allowed out of the home to begin with.

[CoffeeCat]

NOW! Before the feminists absolutely tear me to shreds for saying women aren't built for some things, or that women aren't "supposed" to be strong or in the military, that's totally not what I'm saying. For a woman to work out and build muscle mass is a process that is hindered by her biology and therefore, "against Nature", but normally a person makes that statement with a kind of sanctity attached to the concept of Nature and what Nature dictates and all that garb but I don't. If we didn't go "against Nature", we'd still be clubbing each other over the heads for dinging our side mirrors. And even though some people DO behave that way, our entire way of life is proof that in many ways, we humans are already behaving "against Nature" in that we are attempting to evolve away from what we have been in the past by biological compulsion, into something different by our own psychological and social compulsion. So there is nothing inherently wrong, in my opinion, with something being done "against Nature". In fact, to villify such a description as "against God" or some other irrelevant euphemism is to completely abandon any hope or attempt at understanding how we have evolved as animal creatures and how we continue to evolve as social and psychological creatures. We're the first creature on the planet to become capable of moving away from our biological compulsions by psychological will -- and that's what allows us to DECIDE not to simply yield to are basic biological compulsions.

For example, I'd like to sleep, my body is telling me to sleep... but I have to drive to the airport in 2 hours

Uh oh - you need to start two new threads now: One for Creationism Vs. Evolution and another one for gender equality.

[evcake]

Or maybe we could just steo back for awhile and talk about something light...I dunno...cannibalism, maybe.

Speaking of lightness and amusement - Moderators, could we have comics thread?

[CX]

Well, I'm going to take a step back. I should've learned my lesson about discussing politics at a Trek board with what happened over at HoT. Besides, it doesn't seem right to discuss that kind of stuff here.

[enterprikayak]

Och CX me lad, a thread's "right" if it feels gooood. And if not, then do step away into whatever you DO like!


Gotta say: hugely surprised: because I totally agree with I think, like, 97% of Elessar's most moderate opinions, which surprises me because he's such a blade freak :cough: ...enthusiast.

Moderate opinions from the board's moderator. Excellent. Excellent.

KNIBB HIGH FOOTBALL RULES!

[blacknblue]

In all my crochety years I have never seen anyone's opinion get changed in a thread debate anyway.

[CoffeeCat]

[CX]

In all my crochety years I have never seen anyone's opinion get changed in a thread debate anyway.

Is it a bad sign that I already see so many things from the perspective of a guy your age?

[enterprikayak]

yes. yes it is.

[blacknblue]

Is it a bad sign that I already see so many things from the perspective of a guy your age?

Thou art wise beyond thy tender years Clodhopper.

[TSara]

Well, I'm going to take a step back. I should've learned my lesson about discussing politics at a Trek board with what happened over at HoT. Besides, it doesn't seem right to discuss that kind of stuff here.

Meh....you (general you not you you) just have to learn to not take things personally.





I certainly don't when it comes to these things!

[CX]

My problem is that I do take things personally, I don't let things roll off my back, and I'm damn stubborn and won't let go of things. I've tried being better about it, but mostly I just have to stay out of it completely if I'm not going to get mad at people I don't really want to be mad at.

[evcake]

I find this all SO intriguing...

Although I work for Canada's Department of Nation Defense... am in superb physical shape... am not encumbered by bouncing bosoms, nor bleed several times a year, I:

have NO interest in owning/handling a gun,
have NO interest in all things military; and,
would be the first one running-for-the-hills, if Canada was ever so daft as to consider conscription again.

Am I wrong?

Stick to your guns, as the old saying goes.

[prisocisor]

Metaphorically speaking madame, I absolutely will

[enterprikayak]

My problem is that I do take things personally, I don't let things roll off my back, and I'm damn stubborn and won't let go of things. I've tried being better about it, but mostly I just have to stay out of it completely if I'm not going to get mad at people I don't really want to be mad at.

.....And I mean this totally up front and honest.... no trying to make you mad here....

but don't you feel that that attitude gives OTHERS a lot of control over YOUR life? I mean, that means, *I* could get you all whipped up right now if I felt like it (and not in a good way) just by saying certain words to press your buttons (typing them actually). This gives me power over you.

I, on the other hand, am very difficult to offend. As you MAY have noticed I'm somewhat outspoken. And yet, I am never offended by what others write back. You guys are all OTHERS. That's just it. You're not in my head. I am. In fact, the lamer I think someone's opinon is, the less offended I am by it, since it is so far removed from what I believe to be correct. I just do my best to stay calm and explain my own side. Even away back when everyone was flipping pancakes over a certain chapter of one of my stories. If you read the comments, I stayed completely calm the whole time. (Well, maybe gritting my teeth a little in places, but...)

If I'd flamed everyone and flipped pancakes back, then it would have been a massive fiasco, and I'd never have finished the story and I'd have left Trip/T'Polers in a cloud of rage. Why would I EVER let OTHERS drive me to this sorry end? No matter how silly or closedminded they might be being? Why let OTHERS mess with MY apple cart? I love coming here. Why allow someone ELSE to drive me to a state that causes me to want to leave?

It makes no sense at all to give others this power.

I state all my opinions, and I hear others' opinions, and I figure...I certainly am mostly concerned with myself in my own head....I bet others are mostly concerned about themselves in their own heads...certainly not ME.....so why invent drama and insult where there was none?...or even if there was some...why take things personally? Nothing *I* do is because of anyone else. And nothing anyone does is because of *me*. We're all just in our own heads. We just all make our own choices of how to react to life.

For example. I say: "you are stupid."

Now, if I said "you are purple", you'd just shrug and go, "uh, nope, I'm not purple," and you wouldn't be offended.

But I say: "you are stupid", instead.

You very likely might get all het up and be like "yo bitch! i am NOT stupid! where the F do you get off! YOU'RE stupid! BITCH!" and so forth. And "rightfully so" and all that. But you know you're not stupid, so why get offended just cause I say so? In fact, if you DO get overly offended if someone calls you stupid, one would likely conclude that you *are* a little sensitive about your personal stupidity and you're sensitive about it being pointed out. If instead you just go the "uh, nope, not stupid, not purple either" route, you've just saved yourself a lot of stress.

What do you care if *I* say you're stupid? Is everything *I* say Gospel? Hardly.

I should be able to tell you that you're a loony-faced baboon with no more brains than a toilet brush, and it should roll right off your smart little back. Because you are not a loony-faced baboon, and you should feel confident that you are not.

The book that taught Priso and me to live like this as much as we can was The Four Agreements by Don Miguel Ruiz. A very short, very sensible book that lays out this type of thinking much better than I have here. (It's in every used bookstore too.) It draws from Toltec, Christian, Muslim, and lots of other philosophies to simply explain how nothing anyone does is because of you, how you can choose to be happy or sad or angry or content in nearly every moment in your life. It's all simply in how you choose to perceive the events that occur around you.

This gives you total control over the frame of your own mental existence, and thus over the world that you see. It frees you from the constant strain of worrying and fretting over the unchangeable opinions of the 6.6 billion others around you. It frees you from being upset over trifles that you cannot change.

Amazing book.

Anyhow....just my thoughts.... Interested in yours.....