tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1462488453822156883.post740685257844701905..comments2024-03-19T16:45:07.780+11:00Comments on loon pond: In which the pond gorges on white bread dashing Donners and nattering "Ned" ...Unknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger9125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1462488453822156883.post-24590065555780725622017-07-26T08:32:41.671+10:002017-07-26T08:32:41.671+10:00And maybe to a coming mess in this country too. B...And maybe to a coming mess in this country too. But then Australia never seems to quite go as far as anyone else, maybe because the rewards just aren't that great - a few small time billionaires is all we can manage.<br /><br />The thing about the USA though is the 'fellow traveller' aspect, given that Americans have always been very tolerant of anti-democratic regimes.GrueBleennoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1462488453822156883.post-28516283533641168512017-07-26T07:51:41.433+10:002017-07-26T07:51:41.433+10:00Now don't get the pond started FrankD ...Now don't get the pond started FrankD ...dorothy parkerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00816807935021738560noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1462488453822156883.post-24254997500471164112017-07-26T07:51:01.641+10:002017-07-26T07:51:01.641+10:00Interesting link GB, and while not dealing with th...Interesting link GB, and while not dealing with the US, with interesting echoes relating to the current mess in that country ...dorothy parkerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00816807935021738560noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1462488453822156883.post-41608021807835795562017-07-26T01:25:06.649+10:002017-07-26T01:25:06.649+10:00Donners is spot on when he says that "Judeo[s...Donners is spot on when he says that "Judeo[sic]-Christianity is central to Australia's cultural, economic, moral and spiritual wellbeing", in the same way that the TAB is central to a gambling addict's economic, social and financial wellbeing - as a substantial negative influence.<br /><br />Just on the economic side, disaggregating churches' legitimately charitable activities from their business activities (and removing the ridiculous notion that proselytising is somehow "charitable") would inject something over $40 billion per year into government coffers, pretty much wiping out the deficit at as stroke, even after subtracting the costs of a lot of private school kids moving to the public system. Or if you'd rather spend that cash on useful things, there is not shortage of choices - pay down debt, tax cuts, infrastructure, welfare, health, hookers and blackjack - whatever suits your politics...<br /><br />Good payoffs on the cultural and moral sides as well. Spiritual? Well, no-ones stopping them as likes such things...FrankDnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1462488453822156883.post-78864219095970408142017-07-25T20:02:02.760+10:002017-07-25T20:02:02.760+10:00Donners seems to think the church has some sort of...Donners seems to think the church has some sort of intellectual property right over any sort of virtue he sees in society. Christianity has always been more than happy to appropriate existing customs and practices & incorporate them in it's own rituals then claim them as it's own. The likes of Donners conveniently airbrush out the pogroms, crusades, religious wars and, more recently, support of totalitarian regimes. Here's a potted version https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z-PFoCzlX7M or have a dig on the intertubes regarding the relationship between the church & Mussolini.Befuddledhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16201490489888639207noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1462488453822156883.post-29635793250503449612017-07-25T19:14:42.709+10:002017-07-25T19:14:42.709+10:00For the real face of right-wing christianism in th...For the real face of right-wing christianism in the years to come check out the essay by Chris Hedges titled Trump and the Christian Fascists.<br />But of course right-wing "catholics" have always been in bed with blood-soaked regimes for forever and a day.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1462488453822156883.post-66343815222871073092017-07-25T15:41:50.120+10:002017-07-25T15:41:50.120+10:00" the desire for just two parties, with the o..."<i> the desire for just two parties, with the one born to rule eternally in power</i>"<br /><br />Interesting coincidence, DP. I was just this day reading "<i>Multi-party kleptocracies rather than illiberal democracies</i> [ http://glineq.blogspot.com.au/2017/07/multi-party-kleptocracies-rather-than.html ]GrueBleennoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1462488453822156883.post-68520060670573062872017-07-25T15:28:25.478+10:002017-07-25T15:28:25.478+10:00There can only be a 'war against Christianity&...There can only be a 'war against Christianity' for criticising men who beat their wives if, in fact, such actions are approved or condoned by Christians.Joehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00808416744757194189noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1462488453822156883.post-56146682843217504022017-07-25T15:26:34.406+10:002017-07-25T15:26:34.406+10:00"The reptiles really can't stand minoriti..."<i>The reptiles really can't stand minorities of any shape, kind or form, can they?</i>"<br /><br />Oh yes they can, DP; they stood very well the minority of one known as Brian Harridine when, as a Tasmanian senator with not much more in the way of a vote than Ms Lambie, he, personally and on his own, held the balance of power from December 1994 to March 1996.<br /><br />Very adaptable altogether those reptiles.<br /><br />PS: do you think it's a normal failure of Catholic education that the Broady Boy has no idea of the origin of the word '<b>philanthropy</b>' ? Or '<b>alms</b>' for that matter. And I would seriously doubt that he has even the faintest notion of '<i>The Epic of Gilgamesh</i>'.GrueBleennoreply@blogger.com