WDSmart

I don't doubt that. Microplastics are interfering with everything else in the biosphere.

I guess give credit to Russia under Putin who has lost over 300,000 Russian men to the Ukraine war and counting more every day for reducing humanity. Or to the US under President Trump who saw over 1 million Americans die from Covid pandemic as he dismissed its danger. Yes, although tragic, these deaths do help reduce the overall population, but not as much as you would think since most of the men probably already sired children. I would, however, propose a more humane method, like a one-woman one-child policy. That would reduce our population by about 90% in about 350 years. But, unfortunately, I don't think we even have enough time for that. We're already "over the cliff" as far as destroying the Earth's biosphere is concerned. There's no fixing it now. But reducing our population would help push out the timeline.

Oh, no! Another antisemite!

I don't know about the sperm count, but I agree that "there are already far too many people in this world." I don't know what you mean about "one specific group," but I'd probably not agree with that.

I live in northeast Thailand, far from Bangkok. When I speak Thai up here, I get no sense that anyone is offended. I often have to repeat words, mainly because although they sound okay to me, I'm using the wrong tone (high, low, rising, falling). Other than that, I get along fine up here. When I go to Bangkok, however, I get a lot of the opposite. When I'm in a store and try to talk to a Thai salesperson in Thai, they often seem offended, or at least bored, and start talking to me in English. Once, a particularly offensive Thai just flat-out replied to me in English, "You don't speak Thai good. I can't understand you. Can you speak English?" To which I replied (in my broken Thai), "Kuhn mai phut Anglit dee. Pom mai khao jai. Kuhn phut Thai, mai (with an accentuated rising tone).

If you do not want to sedate yourself, why would you think that would be appropriate for the "witches"? It's not too much for you to WISH that the "witches" will stop barking. It is, IMO, too much for you to take actions that include harming the "witches" to fulfill your wish.

I disagree. And, to clarify my position, I'm not trying to "defend" Islam. I'm saying that it is not any different than ALL religions whose members have historically and currently all use their particular religion's tenets to justify violence and killing.

I don't think this includes killing, but it does show violence... Why are Buddhist monks attacking Muslims? - BBC News

I don't think this includes killing, but it does show violence... Why are Buddhist monks attacking Muslims? - BBC News

You're not missing anything. This is what religions are all about.

I agree 100% with bradiston...

Thanks. I can assure you I will remain a complete atheist, and in fact, an agnostic.

This is off-topic for this page. I'd love to discuss that more with you, but I've been warned about this by Rimmer.

So, are you saying that Christians no longer revere and believe what was written in their Old Testament? If so, why do they still keep it in their Bible?

The quote below is from Exodus, which is a book in both the Jewish Torah and Christian Bible (Old Testament). I hope you consider both these to be "reliable sources." Exodus 21:23-25 "But if there is harm, then you shall pay life for life, eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot.”

If you're bothered by barking dogs, take the valium yourself.

Ad do Jews and Christians...

Thanks for your clarification. There is a category of economics called "Bayesian" that is a mix of capitalism and socialism, and that is what the USA has. Just about anything that starts with "public" is, IMO, a socialist feature. Examples are public libraries, public streets, public police and firefighters, etc. And, again IMO, the "proper" discussions between the left (Democrats) and the right (Republicans) should just be what the percentage of that mix should be. Democrats favor more socialism, and Republicans favor more capitalism. I, of course, favor more socialism.

I agree with most of your recent post except this first part. Having lived in the USA most of my life, I always knew there were these types of people there - racists, homophobes, xenophobes, sexists, fascists, etc. But, I thought they made up no more than 10% of most of our citizenry. Now, I think the 40% or so that seems to be there now has always existed, and Trump (or Washington) did not "create" them, but Trump has allowed them to crawl out from rocks under which they were hiding. However that happened, they are there now, out in the open, and, like you, I think no matter how the next presidential election goes, this could be the end of the civility in the USA and the start of a very chaotic and violent era.

I agree completely. I am a US citizen and a lifelong registered Democrat. Years ago, I used to respect most Republicans, even though I disagreed with their conservative views. I listened to their arguments and understood where they were coming from. Now, especially the Trump MAGA supporters, are just spouting non-democratic, fascist chaos. I'm very concerned for my home country and expect an upsurge in public violence in the now less-than-a-year period leading up to the 2024 presidential election. I believe no matter which side wins, the other side will claim fraud and not accept the outcome. Then, I don't know what will happen, but it won't be good.

Yes, Israel now has shown it is no better (or worse) than the Hamas terrorists.

And, I ask again, what, in your opinion, is the difference between socialism (small s) and Socialism (large S)?

thaibeachlovers replied: Me too. I'd settle for no Trump, and if the Democrats could find someone to replace Biden, I'm okay with that.

I also like socialism (and why do you emphasize "socialism (small s)"? What is Socialism (large S)? I do think, however, that socialism is just a step towards the final goal, communism. I hope if Biden and Trump are on the ballot, you do not get your Christmas wish in 2024. I don't think Biden's done a bad job, maybe not the best, but not bad. I do think another Trump presidency would push the US over the edge and into true chaos and violence, but maybe that's already the case.

About 20 years ago, when I first came to Thailand, I contracted Dengue fever in Koh Samui. My most intense symptom was that I slept for about 20 hours a day for about a week. I did not go into a hospital and stayed in my rented cabin on the beach. After that, I felt groggy most of the time for another week or two. But eventually, all the symptoms passed, and I was well again. I hope that turns out to be the same for this fellow.